


A Year-Long Night

by SimplyPoetic



Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Angels, Demons, How Do I Tag, Human, I Don't Even Know, Jealousy, Manipulation, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Possessive Behavior, Protectiveness, Sharing a Bed, Sleepy Cuddles, Slow Burn, i am dying of boredom in quarantine, kinda sorta follows original plot, no set pairings-yet, this is my first work please don't hate it, visual novel turned actual novel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-05-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:41:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 28,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23887630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SimplyPoetic/pseuds/SimplyPoetic
Summary: You know the saying 'This is more than I signed up for'?  Well, I didn't sign up for any of this.  I didn't sign up to live in Hell, which the local denizens refer to as the Devildom.  I didn't sign up to live with seven, absolutely beautiful, demon brothers.  I didn't sign up for multiple near death experiences.  And I definitely did not sign up to write a paper about my year-long stay as an exchange student, a.k.a. kidnapee.  But life is full of surprises.  And this was going to be a year to remember.
Relationships: Asmodeus (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Beelzebub/Belphegor (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Belphegor (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Leviathan (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Lucifer (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Mammon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Chraracter(s), Satan (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 10





	1. My Descent Into Hell

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is my first time actually putting something I wrote out there. It’s a little nerve wracking but I felt inspired! This game was absolutely amazing to play. The characters were so diverse and I loved the story-line! That being said, I do not own Obey Me or any of the characters aside from my OC and maybe a couple side characters here and there. The story-line follows that of the game, just with some additions to fill in some time gaps, she's gone for a year remember, but it all has my own little twist on it! Please enjoy! I take friendly constructive criticism and the pointing out of spelling or grammatical errors, but no hate please!
> 
> Also, I just want to give out a quick warning, this story may have some themes that may upset/trigger some people.

Waking up, collapsed on the cold, hard floor of a strange place was not quite what I was anticipating. Not when I decided to get some rest on the flight from London to LA where I would be attending University. No, I expected to wake back up, in the seat-made-bed in the first-class cabin, in an airplane, thousands of feet in the air. I had to be still dreaming. That was it. And what a weird dream it was. Granted, it was not the first weird thing to happen to me in the past couple of days.

\-------***FLASHBACK***-------

This was it. I was officially moving. I looked around my bedroom and groaned. The movers would be arriving bright and early tomorrow morning. And I had yet to pack a single thing.

You ever have those moments when you are faced with a decision, and you think to yourself,  _ if I make this choice, I am going to hate myself later,  _ but then you do it anyway? Because at the time, that is the one thing you really want to do? I did that. And now I hate myself.

I was born in England. All my friends were in England. I was moving to LA. It would be a fresh start and I was really excited at the prospect of getting out there on my own. But. I was going to miss the fuck out of them. So when they rang me up last night, when I was supposed to start packing up my bedroom, and asked me out to drinks, who was I to say no?

And I don’t regret my decision to go out, per se. But I do regret maybe, possibly, going a bit overboard. So much so, in fact, that I didn’t get home until bright and early the next morning, and didn’t wake up until early evening with a killer hangover. Yay.

Luckily, all I had left to pack was my bedroom, as I had been packing everything else but the necessities for the last couple of weeks. Still, a full bedroom was a lot. Especially with all of my clothes.

So here I sat, with a residual headache, in the middle of my closet, surrounded by clothes and boxes, resigning myself to the lack of sleep I was going to get. Not that I was going to get much sleep anyway with how anxious I was feeling. I was trying not to dwell on it too much, but I felt like I was going to throw up.

In a matter of hours, I would be moving to the other side of the world, completely on my own, to attend a prestigious university. College. A major milestone for anyone. To leave home for the first time, truly alone, and venture into the wide world. Most people attend local colleges. Or even one just a few hours away. But not me. No. I had to go and pick one halfway across the world. 

I was moving from my beautiful hometown of London, England, to the States. It was my way of experiencing the world, while hopefully also discovering what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. No time for self-discovery like fresh out of secondary school. Right? Right. This decision wouldn’t bite me in the arse at all.

I had applied to and been accepted to multiple top schools and ended up deciding on the University of California. If I was going to change it up, I might as well go all the way. And California seemed like a good place for a fresh start with a lot of sun and beautiful beaches. I smiled to myself, imagining what was going to be a grand adventure. Only to quickly realize I was letting my mind wander into daydream land and I was getting none of my packing done. 

It continued like that for hours into the night. Me packing my entire life into boxes. I eventually finished my closet, packing away all of my clothes aside from what I would be wearing for my flight. I then moved onto my makeup and toiletries, packing everything but what I would need until the last moment. All of my decor was pulled off my walls or shelves and packed away. 

I am clearing off my desk, going through miscellaneous papers when a thick red envelope falls out of a stack I have in my arms. It strikes me as odd because I don’t recall ever having seen it, and yet it was in the papers I had thrown together just the other day. The envelope is a deep burgundy red with a bright red seal of what looks like a raven stamped to keep it shut. When I flip it over to the front, I see my name written in golden calligraphy.

_ Arabella Alyse Hale _

My heart rate speeds up as I hold the envelope in my hand, trembling a bit. I’m not sure why, but something about this feels off. Almost like alarm bells are going off in my head. But it also triggers some distant thought in the back of my mind I can’t quite call forward. 

Either way, this was getting weird. But before I can chicken out, I grab my letter opener (yes, I have one, don't judge me) from my drawer and slice the top of the envelope, keeping the seal intact.

I pull out the papers inside and unfold them so I can begin to read, in that same calligraphy, what is written.

_ Dear Arabella, _

_ I am writing to inform, and congratulate you on your acceptance into the Royal Academy of Diavolo’s Exchange Program. You have been selected along with one other human to join us down in the Devildom for one academic year. This exciting new exchange program is the first of its kind in the hopes of fostering understanding among the different races. I look forward to meeting you soon! _

_ This letter contains all the information you will need to know regarding your acceptance and preparations being made for your arrival. We will have even more information for you later on. _

_ Your’s Truly, _

_ Lord Diavolo, Future King of Devildom _

I briefly looked over the other papers before I let out a shaky laugh. This was a very, very elaborate prank someone was trying to pull on me. It had to be. I threw the letter in one of the boxes, deciding to keep it for laughs, and steeled myself to get back to work. Still, something about that letter nagged me long through the night as I finished my packing.

I, at some point, did manage to get about two hours of sleep. Still, waking up I felt groggy and not quite ready for everything this day was going to bring me. I went ahead and turned on some jams and hopped in the shower in the hopes of energizing myself some. It worked. Kind of. 

Getting out of the shower and drying off, I took a moment to gather myself for what all today was going to entail. It was currently 7:30 in the morning. My aunt would be here around 8:30 to help me finish preparing for the movers who would be here at 9. It was going to take approximately two or three hours to load everything into the trucks and do one last check over. At which point I would be saying goodbye to my house and my aunt and would be going out to lunch with my friends before they dropped me off at the airport.

In other words, I was on the clock and wasting time. I got dressed in the leggings and sports bra I set aside last night, choosing to keep the sweater off while I was working, and dried and braided my hair before I got back to work.

My last day in London seemed to pass way too quickly. Everything was moved out smoothly and they assured me it would all make it to L.A. in one piece. With nothing left but a couple of suitcases to tide me over, I said goodbye to my aunt and left with my friends to get one last bite to eat. And coffee. I needed coffee.

Looking back now, I wish I had stayed a little longer. Said I love you just one more time. But in my past self’s defense, I thought I was going to California. Not Hell. And I had a 15hr flight to catch.

Unfortunately for me, lunch flew by, and sooner than I wanted, I was at the airport, with all my luggage checked, saying goodbye to my friends. We made all the regular promises of keeping in touch despite the time difference. I might have shed a couple of tears. It wasn't long before I was saying goodbye to not only my friends, but also my home, London. 

Even with my coffee, the lack of sleep and the heaviness of my emotions were starting to weigh me down. My only saving grace, was the fact that I had booked a seat in first class for this 15-hour flight. It was my way of treating myself since I knew this was going to be, not only an emotional roller coaster of a flight, but also my first step heading off into the world. On my own.

Boarding the flight, it was hard not to feel a little excitement. I had never flown first class before and I had my own private cubby. I wanted to make the most of this flight. It would be my last chance to drink for a couple of months since the drinking age in the U.S. is 21. I ordered a glass of red wine and a small snack and turned on a movie on my private television.

I wish I could say my focus stayed on the movie, but my head was a mess. I was torn between wanting to cry after leaving everything and everyone behind in London, to wanting to bounce up and down in excitement at moving to L.A., to being nervous about school. I felt it all. It wasn’t until the end credits started rolling that I realized I had not seen a minute of that movie.

We had been in the air for a while and the exhaustion from the last couple of days was finally catching up to me. Especially after my glass of wine and a full belly. I decided to pull my small partition door closed, and set my seat to bed mode to see if I could fall asleep while watching a movie on the little screen. The opening scene had barely finished before I was out like a light.

_ Help me… Please help me. _

I tried to look around but all that surrounded me was darkness.

_ I was locked up by a demon. You are my only hope, help me get out of here. _

The sound of the voice was faint and slightly echoey. This was a dream. It was like one I’ve had so many times before, but this time, it was also different. 

_ I beg you. You must find me. _

The voice sounded desperate, but the more he spoke, the more the voice faded until there was nothing but darkness. And then, in the distance, a light. And a new, unfamiliar voice calling to me. Beckoning. 

\-------

And that, is how I got to where I am now, sprawled on the floor. Being stared at by several men on a raised dais in fancy chairs in this court-like room.

“Welcome to the Devildom, Arabella,” the man in the center, above all the others in what looked to be a judge's seat began to speak. “Oh, pardon me. Feeling a bit shocked, are we?” He has a red, military-looking uniform with a blue medal pinned to his right shoulder and a black cape draped over his left. With his black shirt and white tie, he looks immaculately dressed. He is very obviously the one in charge here.

I pinch my wrist, hoping against hope that this is all a dream. I feel the sharp twinge. This is not a dream. And if it is, well then I think my nightmares are about to get a whole lot worse if I could feel pain. I remembered the letter I had read and tried to take a second to calm myself. 

“Well, that’s understandable. You’ve only just arrived after all,” he continues talking while I remain silent. “As a human, it will probably take a little while for you to adjust to things here in the Devildom.”

My breath hitches at the mention of me being ‘human’. I try to ignore the implications of everything he says and continue to observe. There are five men in all before me. All wearing some type of uniform in one way or another. The man speaking, however, stands out amongst them. He is rather handsome. They all are. Which doesn’t help but add to the intimidation of this whole ordeal. Looking around, I almost feel like I am on trial, still on the floor.

I realize he’s no longer talking and look back at him. He stares at me with his piercing yellow eyes as he waits for my response.

“The… Devildom?” I remember reading that word in my letter, but I have no clue what exactly that is.

Except, instead of answering the question in my voice, he responds, “Yes, exactly, the Devildom. I see you catch on quickly. Excellent.” I’m not sure what I caught on to, but yeah. Sure. Cool.

“I suppose I should start by introducing myself,” He stands from his seat and walks over to me, offering me his hand to help me up. “My name is Diavolo. I am the ruler of all demons, and all here know of me.” I stand up, brushing off my leggings, and he retreats a step back, still speaking all the while, “And someday soon, I will be crowned king of the Devildom.”

Looking up, I can't help but feel minuscule compared to this monster of a man. Or, I guess, demon. Diavolo gestures around the room “This is the Royal Academy of Diavolo… through we just call it RAD. You’re standing inside the assembly hall. We officers of the student council conduct our meetings here. I am the president of said council.”

“Why am I here?” Though I pretty much know the answer, I want it said to my face. I want this to feel somehow more real than it does.

I’m startled to hear another voice answer my question. The man with black hair, who was sitting closest to Lord Diavolo, gets up from his seat and also walks over to stand in front of me.

“I will explain everything to you.” 

As he draws closer, I am able to see his eyes, like Diavolo’s, are not natural. They are a deep red. I shudder slightly and glance back over at Diavolo as he begins speaking again.

“Arabella, this is Lucifer. He is a demon and the Avatar of Pride. He is also the vice president of the student council and my right-hand man… and not just in title, I assure you. Beyond that, he is also my most trusted friend.” 

I look back over at Lucifer and see him stand just a bit taller. Obviously pleased at what Diavolo was saying, even if he did try to hide it. He really did stand proud in his black uniform. But everything about him screamed rule enforcer. Perfectly dressed, rigid back, stern expression. 

I don’t know what I was expecting from the devil himself. But everything about this was completely different from what they taught in church.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, Diavolo.” Even his voice has a slight edge to it. “Speaking on behalf of the entire student body at this great and storied school of ours, I offer you a most heartfelt welcome, Arabella.”

He says it all with a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. And I, having not slept well if at all the past two nights, was beginning to get pissed.

“Answer my question.”

“Interesting. This one is quite different from Solomon.” Lucifer turns to say to Diavolo before looking back at me, a glint in his eye. “Diavolo believes that we demons should start strengthening our relationship with both the human world and the Celestial Realm. As a first step toward this goal, we’ve decided to institute an exchange program.”

And there it was. The truth I was waiting for. That letter wasn’t some meticulous prank after all. And now, it was sitting at the bottom of one of my hastily packed boxes, who knows where at this point. I wasn’t sure how long had passed, or even how I got to be here in the first place.

“We’ve sent two of our students to the human world and two to the Celestial Realm. And we are welcoming four students to our school. You are the last of such to arrive. So, I take it you’ve probably put two and two together at this point, right?”

I nod ever so slightly and he continues on without missing a beat.

“ ** You’ve  ** been chosen from among the people of the human world to participate in this program of ours.  ** You are our newest exchange student. ** ” He doesn’t say it outright, but I can tell he is trying to emphasize the honor and exclusivity at being chosen. I want to tell him he can go shove it, but instead bite my tongue. I can’t really afford to piss off someone high up in power like him. Yet.

“Your period of stay is one year. You will have to work on the tasks you will receive from RAD. After one year, you will write a paper about your exchange here in the Devildom.”

“Write a paper?!” I expected to have to do work as a student in part of an exchange program, but I absolutely loathe papers. I know one thing for certain, I would never make it as an English major.

“I am not telling you to write a doctoral thesis. You can take it easy,” I shoot him a glare but breathe an audible sigh of relief. “Don’t glare at me like that. It’s not like I will abandon you all by yourself here in the Devildom. You need someone to look after you, and I think I know just the person. My brother, Mammon. He is the Avatar of Greed and… how should I put it...? Well, you will understand soon enough.” He has a small smirk that tells me this is not going to end well for me. 


	2. The Scummy Second Born

Just when I thought things were bad enough, they were about to take an even worse turn. Lucifer’s smirk after telling me who will be my guardian is enough proof of that.

Reaching into one of his pockets, he pulls out a red and black device with a raven on it, and hands it to me. “Here, take this device. It’s called a D.D.D. It's a lot like the cell phones in your world. This will be yours to use as long as you’re here.” I internally groan upon realizing, I do not have my cell phone. My baby.

“Now, go ahead and try calling Mammon with it. The numbers for my brothers and I should all be programmed in already.”

I swipe to open the device with my finger and find the configuration to be very similar to my cell phone. I find the phone app, look for Mammon's contact, and before I have a chance to doubt myself, hit dial.

After about three rings, a lazy voice responded, “Yoooo.”

And me, being a smartass, responded in kind, “Yoooo.”

“Are ya foolin’ around? Who the hell are ya?”

“Arabella. I'm a human.”

“Whaaa? A human? Geez, I was gettin’ all chilly here thinkin’ it was Lucifer again. Ya should’ve told me right away. So, what business does a human got with THE Mammon?”

I hesitated for a second trying to figure out how to respond. “You will be in charge of me from now on…”

“No way! There’s nothin’ in it for me. Whaddya even mean by ‘be in charge of you’?” Mammon pauses as if waiting for a response before rambling on a second later. “AAH! I get it now, you're the other human--the new exchange student! G’luck with that, and see ya.”

“Lucifer called for you,” I didn’t understand why it was on me to wrangle his brother to care for me. I shot him a glare as he stood across from me. Waiting.

“Pfft, whatever. Ya think THE Mammon would listen to ya just ‘cause you're trying to scare me with that name?” Mammon was getting louder on the phone. I had to pull it away from my ear slightly as he yelled, giving Lucifer the opportunity to grab the D.D.D.

“You’ve got 10 seconds...9...8…”

“YESSIR!” Mammon’s shout can be heard around the room. And once again, I am reminded of how intimidating everyone in this room is.

Lucifer ends the call and hands the device back to me. “Sounds like you had a nice chat.”

“He seems… reliable. I think I would’ve preferred you, Lucifer.”

Lucifer laughs at my hesitancy, “You look even more worried now, huh.”

Diavolo, looking a little worried, decides to but in. “Well, if you were suddenly brought to a strange place and then told that an unfamiliar face will now take care of you, you’d certainly feel anxious. However, Mammon isn’t the only one to help you out.” It is strange, but I feel oddly comforted by Lord Diavolo when he speaks.

“Now then… we still need to introduce our new friend to your brothers, Lucifer. And it’s probably better that you do it instead of me, wouldn’t you say?” Diavolo turns to Lucifer and then steps out of the way to the three other demons who are suddenly standing before me. The intimidation factor rises even more as they all tower over me.

“Yes… As much as I **dread** the idea of doing so, you’re right.”

One of the brothers steps forward, clearly offended. “Oh, come now. **Really?** You should be honored that you get to introduce such a **sweet** and **charming** little brother like me!” I couldn’t deny that he was attractive. What with his caramel-pinkish hair swept in his eyes. His golden eyes. Golden eyes that were boring straight into mine. I didn’t want to look away, but he broke eye contact with a slight frown, turning his gaze back to Lucifer.

“This one here is Asmodeus. He’s the fifth eldest and the Avatar of Lust.” Lucifer ignores Asmodeus as he begins to get the introductions out of the way, further upsetting his brother.

“Wh...I can't believe you just totally ignored what I said! And not only that, you referred to me as **this one**. How rude!” It was easy to see how, of the seven deadly sins, he would be lust. He practically oozed sex.

“Hmph. At least he didn’t ignore you altogether. How do you think I feel?” The blond demon steps forward slightly.

Lucifer continues with his introductions, obviously annoyed. “That one there is Satan, the fourth eldest of us. At first glance, he may seem like a responsible demon with a good head on his shoulders, but looks can be deceiving.” Lucifer is right, that was my first impression. He almost looks like a younger Lucifer in the way he is dressed and carries himself. Look-wise, his messy blond hair and green eyes couldn't be more different.

“Aha, so **I’m** that one, am I? Nice to meet you, Arabella. I’m Satan, the Avatar of Wrath.”

“The Avatar of Wrath?” He seemed so calm and collected. I would have never guessed wrath.

“It basically sums up what he’s about. He may flash you a pretty smile like that, but you had better be careful because it's all an act.” Was Lucifer trying to warn me?

Still, as he spoke, I could see the truth in them. Satan began radiating power. If one thing was certain, those two did not get along. “If you continue saying such nonsense, you’ll just scare Arabella.”

Still seething, he turned to me and his face softened slightly, “Don’t take him too seriously, Arabella. Lucifer enjoys speaking ill of his brothers. He is the Avatar of Pride after all.”

Lucifer sighed, frowning. “Are you done?” With no response from Satan, he continued. “Now, the one there with the very grumpy look on his face is Beelzebub. He’s the sixth oldest.”

“Lucifer, I’m hungry.” The messy, almost spiky orange-haired demon spoke. He looks disheveled in his uniform. His coat hanging open, wrinkly. His teal shirt not fully buttoned and an orange undershirt peeking out. 

One thing I noticed, while they all stood in front of me, they had a uniform, but none of them were dressed the same. Lucifer has a black shirt buttoned up fully to his neck, under his black uniform, neatly buttoned. Satan is dressed similarly neatly, but with the teal shirt the other two brothers have, buttoned up with a yellow bowtie. And Asmodeus has his uniform neatly buttoned, with his belt tied in a half bow and a pink ribbon tied around the neck of his teal shirt. I always hated uniforms, but I appreciate the way they each make it their own. I smile to myself before I am interrupted from my thoughts by Beelzebub.

“I’m Beelzebub, the Avatar of Gluttony.” As he speaks, his stomach growls loudly and I laugh.

“So…” Lucifer raises his eyebrows at me. “There are seven of us brothers in all, and I am the eldest. Mammon, the second oldest of us, will be here soon. My other brothers aren’t here at the moment, but… well, we can get to them later. All in good time.

Diavolo walks back closer and puts his hand on Lucifer's shoulder. “During your stay in the Devildom, the seven brothers will lend you their strength. To keep you safe, you are to stay with them at the House of Lamentation.”

“To keep me safe…?”

“Most agree with Diavolo, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t vulgar demons out there who wouldn’t harm you. If anything were to happen to you, it would be our responsibility. And I won’t betray Diavolo’s expectations. So I will do everything in my power to make sure you survive your stay down here in the Devildom.” 

**Survive**. Hearing Lucifer say that word, everything freezes for a moment. It was something I had been trying to avoid, but the panic was beginning to set in. Hell, my new reality was beginning to set in. I was, literally, in Hell. I would be living with Lucifer… and Satan. Two completely different demons. My goal was to try to **survive** the year ahead of me. I tried to take calming breaths, but I could feel the panic building.

“Isn’t that nice, Arabella. Now you will be friends with the future king of the Devildom!’ Satan saying my name pulls me back into the conversation and I smile weakly. If any of them notice my internal struggle, they don't let on.

“Well, you’ve got that done now, and it seems the idiot has arrived as well.” Lucifer motions to the door just as it bursts open and a white-haired demon comes rushing at me.

“HEY! Just **who** do you think you are, human? You’ve got a lotta nerve summoning the **Great Mammon**!” I look around at the others, silently pleading for help, but they seem content to sit back and watch how this plays out. “Listen up, because I’m only gonna say this once. If you value your life, then you’ll hand over all your money now! And anything else of value, too!” I look down at myself and laugh as he continues talking. Valuables. Money. Yes, because I somehow have that stashed in my leggings and oversized jumper. I also realize, I’m not wearing shoes. Just my tall sweater socks. Great.

Lost in my thoughts, all I manage to catch from the white-haired demon continuing to speak is something about eating me. And then Lucifer threatening to punch him. And then actually punching him. The sound causing me to wince.

“GAH, OWW! Hey, what’s the big idea?! I thought you were actually going to give me **a chance** to shut up before punching me!”

“Arabella, Mammon here is the Avatar of Greed. He governs and oversees all forms of it. Whenever he takes a liking to someone, they suddenly find themselves awash in money. But from what I hear, if he decides to break it off with someone, that wealth evaporated. They’re left without a Grimm to their name.” Satan officially introduces his brother, Mammon.

Asmodeus chiming in, “And he’s also a masochist. That's important.”

Lucifer cuts them off to inform Mammon of his new role as my… protector… guardian… thing. Which is met with more yelling from the demon. I tune them out slightly as I take in my surroundings. Behind the seats on the dais, the wall is lined with large windows displaying a beautiful night sky. The moon, bright with silvery light, hangs low in the sky, and is… supersized. And hundreds of thousands of little white dots speckle the night sky. Beautiful stars, twinkling.

I’m pulled, literally, back into reality by a hand jerking my wrist. The white-haired demon, Mammon, is standing right in front of me. I look down at the wrist he's holding tightly before looking up at him. He, like Beelzebub, is haphazardly dressed. His jacket unbuttoned, his teal shirt wrinkled, and his yellow tie hanging loose around his neck. His white hair is tousled and, standing so close, I am able to see that his eyes seem to be dark blue with golden flecks.

“All right, **human** , listen up. As much as I don’t want to look after you, I’ve got no choice. It’s a huge pain in the ass, and I am too important for this kind of thing, but **Lucifer** told me to do it, so I will. But in return, you better make sure you don't cause me any trouble, got it?”

Not seeing any way out of this that ends well for me, I respond. “All right, deal.”

“Good, that’s what I want to hear. As long as you do as I say, we won’t have any problems. Just be sure you don’t forget which one of us is the boss here.” 

I know he means himself, but I can't help but think it's Lucifer. He does seem to be the one directing things under Diavolo’s orders after all. And direct he does. “Now that we’ve gotten that taken care of, on to the next subject: your tasks.”

“Tasks?” Short answers seem to be the only ones I can give while trying to keep myself together.

“Good question… Your task is to polish up your soul nicely and to acquire the power to resist demons.” 

“My soul?” My voice trembles slightly.

“Demons like humans with nice souls. Let me put it another way. Nice souls look like shiny jewels. Do you understand now?” I can’t help but feel as if he is trying to bait me at this point. He is no longer oblivious to my suffering. In fact he is smirking as if he is enjoying himself. “Demons will use their wisdom and abilities to tempt the humans so they can get their hands on their souls. Other demons at RAD also have tasks assigned to them just like you. In other words, either humans will be tempted by demons, or demons will lose against the shiny and noble soul of a human and make a run for it. You could say it is an experiment to find out who will win.”

They are all mad. That has to be it. No sane person could rationally propose an experiment like this in such a straightforward manner. Still, I am competitive by nature and I feel as if a gauntlet has been thrown at my feet in a challenge. 

“What happens if I win?”

“Let’s see…” Lucifer clearly wasn’t expecting my response, but he almost looks pleased. “I will prepare some rewards to make sure you give it your all.”

I frown at him. It seems like me, a mere human as they all seem to enjoy pointing out, is at a bit of a disadvantage in comparison to literal demons. In hell. Their home turf.

“There, there, don’t give me that look. Don’t take it so seriously. You won’t have to do those tasks on your own. After all, you don’t have any magic in you unlike the other exchange student from the human world…”

Great, so I am the farthest behind everybody in this race. Even the other human has magic. A human with magic… I couldn’t even imagine. In my dreams maybe.

“... So my brothers and I will lend our power to you and you alone. With that, my explanation has come to a close. Welcome to your year as an exchange student, Arabella.”

I am still trying to process everything said as the brothers strike up a conversation. I catch bits and pieces of the conversation and am pretty sure they are talking about eating me. Again. Not wanting to show weakness, and also trying to reassure myself, I murmur, “Let's make this a year to remember…”

Mammon throws me a weird look. “You… sure are a positive one. Welp, I won’t stop ya from havin’ some fun.” He is still standing next to me but has released my wrist from his death grip.

Lord Diavolo clears his throat to gather the attention of the room. “Arabella, from now on you will be living in the House of Lamentation with Lucifer and his six younger brothers. Humans, angels, demons. I imagine a universe where each accepts the other. Where we are brought together as friends. This is my dream and I am asking you to be a foundation for it. One year, that is all I ask of you. Good luck, Arabella.”

Taking that as a dismissal, Mammon grabs my wrist again and starts pulling me out the door.

“Come on human. Keep up would ya?”

I don’t say anything to him as I struggle to keep up. But I do try to take the time to observe my surroundings. The campus is massive. And outside, in the fresh crisp air, the sky looks beautiful. The moon, full, bright, and low. Some stars visible through the haze of the clouds in the sky.

“...Ugh, I don’t believe this, Of all the rotten luck… Why should I have to look after some human? It’s insulting, that's what it is! That rotten bastard… Does he really think he can scare me into doin’ whatever he wants?” Keeping a firm, slightly bruising grip on my wrist, Mammon continues forward, complaining to himself all the while. “Just so we’re clear… it’s not like I can’t say no to Lucifer, okay?! I only agreed to babysit you because, um… Well you know, because… uh…”

Mammon is honestly terrified of Lucifer. From what I could tell, all the brothers are. I guess him being the oldest means he is the strongest as well. I could feel the power radiating from him earlier and I was definitely afraid.

“Anyway, **it doesn't matter**! Just don’t go thinking that I’m scared of Lucifer or anything! Because I’m **not**!”

I decide, for the safety of my wrist, that it is best to just agree with him, “I know that.”

“...Oh. Okay then, as long as we’ve got that straight.”

He continues pulling me up to the gate of a large house before he lets go of my wrist to push it open. He keeps walking to the front door, ignoring me as I stop to take it all in.

It’s a large Gothic style manor painted grey with white trim. In the darkness of the Devildom, the shadows cast give it an eerie feeling, what with the wrought iron fence and leafless tree. But there is also something beautiful about the image. 

I rush forward to catch up with Mammon as he opens the door to walk inside.

“This is the House of Lamentation. It’s one of the dorms here at RAD. Well… it’s not JUST one of the dorms. It’s reserved for student council members only.”

I walk into the entryway to see two grand staircases leading to the second floor. As well as two large gargoyles facing each other on opposite sides of the hall. There are various paintings lining the walls up the stairs. The creepy, beautiful, look continues on the inside as well it seems.

Mammon, who does not appear to enjoy silence, rambles on about his brothers and the social pyramid. All the while, I look around the spacious entry. I notice a bulletin board with various flyers put up, almost like a notice board. There is a flyer advertising an open part-time position. Information about school events coming up. Even a note from Lord Diavolo welcoming me to the Devildom. I smile slightly as Mammon starts leading me towards my room.

“If there’s something you wanna ask me, you’d best do it now.” Mammon turns to me, stopping between the two gargoyles.

“No, I can’t think of any at the moment.”

“Fine then. Now, I’m gonna give you a piece of advice, so listen up. If you wanna survive even a day here in the Devildom, you’d better listen REAL close to what I’m about to say. If it ever looks like a demon is about to attack you… run away. Either that, or die.”

Before I can respond, I’m startled by a second voice, “How about this? I vote for YOU to die, Mammon.”

Mammon, it seems, is also started as he jumps about a foot in the air before turning around. “D’ah…! Levi… Uh, I-listen up, human! This here is Leviathan, the Avatar of Envy. He’s the third oldest of us brothers. Since his name’s sorta hard to say, you can just call him Levi! Okay then, let’s move on.” He tries ushering me past the other demon, Leviathan, but is stopped with a foot in his path.

“Mammon, give me back my money. Then go crawl in a hole and die.”

Not even a full day has gone by and I am already stuck in the middle of sibling drama. Demon sibling drama. So much for the exchange program, because I wasn’t going to make it through this day alive.

“Come on, I told you I’d get it to you! I just need a little more time… And you still want me to die even after I give it back? That’s real harsh, Levi!”

“You need **a little** more time? How much more?” You could tell Leviathan was starting to get worked up. He was radiating power similar to how Satan was in the student council room when he was talking to Lucifer.

“A **little** more, okay?! A little more means a little more!”

“You’ve been telling me that for the last 200 years, Mammon.”

All I wanted was to sneak away. Anywhere in this house had to be better than right here, but unfortunately, I was stuck between the two of them. Well, between the two of them and the two large stone gargoyles. I felt like someone watching a tennis match looking back and forth.

“Hey, no! It hasn’t been 200 years! It’s been 260! Get it right, Levi!” Okay, so I don’t know about everything else everyone says about him, but he’s definitely an idiot.

“Unbelievable. Seriously Mammon, you’re--” Leviathan is interrupted by Mammon.

“I’m what? **Scum**? Is that what you’re gonna say?”

“--you’re a **lowlife** and a **waste of space**.”

“Hey! Come on, that’s even worse!”

“Whatever… Just give me back my money. I need it to buy the Blu-ray box set of _Journey to the Devildom: The Tale of a Little She-Devil and Her Reluctant Companion._ The initial round of copies includes promotional tickets to a live event as a special bonus.”

“I’ve got no idea what you’re even talking about, Levi, but it doesn’t matter! Because I don’t even have any money to give you. How am I supposed to give back money I don't have, huh?!”

“So then, you’re telling me you **refuse** to pay me back?”

“...What? You looking for a fight, is that it?”

Tired of their fighting at this point, and just tired in general, I decide to interrupt. “Look, I’m sure he’s not refusing to pay you back. Why don’t you give him a couple of days to get however much he owes you together? If he doesn’t have it by then, then you can threaten him with death.”

“What’s the deal with this human you’ve got here with you? Is she your newest sponsor or something?” Leviathan looked at me as if just now remembering I was there.

“Wha… no! I’d need someone rich enough to support me. Don’t be crazy.” Mammon laughs and then pauses as if remembering something. “Though now that I think about it… Levi, I’m pretty sure this one likes to collect the same stuff that you do. I bet you’d kill to have some of the stuff in Arabella’s collection. You know what I’m talking about… those doll things you always buy. What do you call ‘em again?”

“Figurines.”

“Yeah, those!”

Levi turns to me, completely oblivious to my confused expression. “So, you also collect figurines? Which ones? Ooh, do you have any of the main characters from _Battle Princess Brigade?_ Or _Girl’s Only?_ Or _Diamond Dust_?”

“...Sorry, I don’t follow you.” I was going to kill Mammon. He just threw me to the wolves and ran. Literally disappeared. And I was the bait.

“...Hold on a second! You’ve gotta be kidding me..! That ass Mammon ran off! Do you realize what just happened? Mammon used you as a distraction to get away from me… Or maybe I should say he used you as a **sacrifice**. I’ll admit that Mammon is one of the scummiest scumbags you’ll ever meet… a total lowlife. But still, that was pretty dumb of you letting him use you like that.” Levi paused for a second and sighed. “This is EXACTLY why humans are-- … What a second. Humans… yes, that’s it… Suddenly, I’ve got an idea. Listen, are you free right now? Of course you are. You’ve gotta be, right? You know what? Nevermind. Either way, **you're coming with me**.”

Great. My so-called demon protector just abandoned me at the first sign of trouble. And it was trouble he caused, no less. Still, I suppose he did warn me.


	3. A Masterful Plan

All I could think about as I followed Levi upstairs to his room was how much I would love to throttle Mammon for this. I mean, as much as I wanted to be impartial and form my own opinions of the brothers rather than listen to what they think about each other, he was making it difficult. What kind of person leaves their supposed charge to the mercy of someone else to save themselves? Ugh.

To make matters even worse, right before we got to Levi’s room, my phone chimed in a message from the arsehole. And it wasn’t an apology. Nope. I let out a heavy sigh, trying to keep myself calm.

Leviathan seemed to take my sigh as something else. “...What’s that now? You want to know why I looked around to see if anyone was watching before I closed the door? Why do you THINK I did it?! Isn’t it obvious?! Imagine what would happen if someone saw me inviting  ** you ** into my room! A  ** human ** who doesn’t even look like  ** an otaku ** , but a  ** normie ** ! You know what people would say, right?!”

“Are you worried that people might gossip?” I tried to ask the question as dryly as possible. I was beginning to see that all the brothers, the demons in the heart of the exchange program, saw me as nothing but a lowly human. Someone beneath them.

“Of… of c-c-c… of c-c-course not! Th...th-that's crazy! There’s room in my heart for only one person, and she’s animated! I’ll always stay faithful to my dear, sweet Ruri-chan, always! Why would people gossip?! I mean, me and some non-otaku--some normie?! And not only that, a THREE-DIMENSIONAL one from the real world?! It’s insane, that’s what it is!” I was surprised to find his face flushed while he looked down trying to hide his eyes behind his hair.

Now that I was, hopefully, no longer in any immediate danger of being killed and or eaten, I took a second to look him over. Him and his surroundings anyway. He seemed to be the shortest of the brothers that I’ve met thus far, not that that said much, as he still towered over me. He had purple hair with long bangs that swept into his face, almost but not quite, hiding his orange eyes. His uniform was almost as unkempt as Beelzebub’s with his jacket hanging open, his teal shirt not fully buttoned, and a purple tie hanging loosely.

His room was… beautiful. He had an aquarium that took up the entirety of the far wall. And the ceiling also appeared to be a part of the aquarium. He had jellyfish lights that seemed to just float above a bathtub which might or might not be his bed with pillows and blankets in it. All along one wall he had a desk with multiple monitors, all pulled up to some anime or game, and bookshelves covered in figurines and manga. One of the manga caught my eye.  _ The Tale of the Seven Lords: The Lord of Shadow Awakens.  _ This particular book seemed to be a part of a rather large series, and the dark blue hardcover with gold calligraphy was beautiful.

“What is it, human? What are you looking at? Wait, that looks like…  _ The Tale of the Seven Lords _ . Are you a fan of that, too?”

“Huh? Oh, no. I’ve actually never heard of it. It’s got beautiful binding though.”

“... Excuse me? You don’t know TSL? And you call yourself a human?! Just how clueless ARE you?! How could you not know?! Just the fact that you don’t know TSL alone is proof that you’ve been wasting your life! So, I’m going to do you a favor and teach you about TSL. Make sure you pay attention!”

He looked so happy going on and on about this series that it was hard not to get swept up into the excitement. Still, as interested as I was about the book, 138 volumes seem a bit much for me. The more he talks about the series the more I think it sounds familiar. I’m pretty sure one of my friends back home was a huge fan. I’m pretty sure I have actually done a couple of commissions of characters for her.

“Check it out. See that goldfish in the fish tank there?” It’s at that moment that I realize, what I thought was an aquarium was a tank that held one, single, tiny, goldfish. “He’s actually named Henry. I love TSL so much that I couldn’t help naming him after the main character. But I can’t really high-five a goldfish, can I?” 

Leviathan seemed content to just go on and on about TSL and the human author and all the things he wanted to do in the human world. I just sat back and let him talk, occasionally offering a word or two of input.

Eventually, even Levi got tired of talking about it. “...All right, enough. This is starting to depress me. Anyway, I didn’t bring you here to tell you about TSL. I don’t think there is any harm in just coming out and saying what you already know is true: Mammon is a complete and utter scumbag. It’s very important that you understand this. So I’ll say it one more time. Mammon is a  ** hopeless ** …  ** worthless… scumbag ** .” He pauses in between each word for emphasis. “I lent that scumbag money, and now I want him to pay me back. But being the scumbag that he is, he won’t do it. I wish I could force him to do it, but despite what a rotten waste of space he is, Mammon’s still the second oldest. As the third oldest, no matter how hard I try, I don’t stand a chance against him.”

“Why do you seem to hate him so much?” Why does everyone hate him so much, is what I wanted to add on. But I decided to settle for the one story for now.

“You say you want to know how Mammon and I first became enemies? Well, it’s a long story, but sure. I’ll tell you, human.” He sits down at his desk and faces me, deciding to get comfortable before beginning. “Once, a long time ago, Mammon won a prize in a convenience store promotional campaign. If you bought something, they let you reach into a box and pull out a piece of paper that told you what you’d won. And the prize Mammon won was a special Seraphine figurine, something I would’ve died to have. But, despite the fact that Mammon had no interest in it at all, he refused to give it to me. Why, you ask?” Here he paused, presumably for dramatic effect.

“Because I wanted it… that’s it. That was the only reason. I wanted it, and he said no just to torment me. I mean, how awful is that?! So, I got to thinking… Mammon’s going to end up treating Seraphine like some random piece of junk. That much is a given. I can maybe handle it if he at least leaves her in her original packaging, but what if he actually takes her out of the box?! He might just do it! And if he does, he’ll get dust on her, won’t he?! I decided I had to save Seraphina, so I snuck into Mammon’s room in the middle of the night. And what do you think I saw there?! You’re not gonna believe it. He didn’t open the box… no, it’s way worse than that. He hadn’t even taken it out of the plastic convenience store bag, which he’d tossed on the floor of his room. THE FLOOR! He actually left SERAPHINA on the FLOOR! The Queen of the High Elves Herself! Sure, she seems cold and prideful at first, but once you get her alone, you find out that she really wants affection, she just doesn’t know how to admit it, and it’s soooo cute! Yet Mammon just threw her on the floor! And I don’t think he’d cleaned it in three months. It was covered in junk. Old empty cup ramen containers, tissues with dried snot and...and boogers in them. Stuff was strewn everywhere. And there she was, lying there amongst all of that! On the FLOOR! Tossed aside like so much junk! How COULD he?! It was so awful that I just lost it, and flew into a rage. I walked straight over to Mammon, who was lying on his bed asleep. Then I raised my leg up into the air over him and brought my heel down into his stomach as hard as I could. But the next thing I knew, he wasn’t there on the bed anymore. It all happened so fast. He moved with incredible speed. He grabbed me, picked me up, and slammed me headfirst onto the floor in a pile driver. And the worst part is that he was STARK NAKED!” He was beet red, and I couldn’t tell if it was because he was embarrassed at seeing his brother naked, or at being super angry. Maybe both.

“… As I started to lose consciousness, I remember thinking… Why does he have to sleep in the nude? He could at least put on some underwear. I don’t remember anything else after that… You’ve seen just how fast he is yourself, haven’t you? No one aside from Lucifer or Beel has that kind of speed. But if, say, a  ** human,  ** made a  ** pact ** with Mammon, and bound him to their service… Then he’d have to do whatever that human told him to. Which means that if you make a pact with Mammon and then ordered him to give me back my money… he wouldn’t have any choice but to do it.”

“What do you mean a pact?”

Levi stared at me like he was wondering how hard I was dropped on my head when I was a baby. “A pact, with a demon… Haven’t you seen that in movies and such? The demon lends his strength to a human to make their wish come true in exchange for their soul.”

“I think I’ll have to pass. You see, I am quite attached to my soul.”

“The soul isn’t always necessary. It depends on what's in the pact. But, well, you'll need to give SOMETHING to the demon to make it worth the exchange, so it’s pretty much inevitable. If you don’t want to give up your soul, then I’ll tell you how you can negotiate with Mammon. Also, I’m pretty sure it would be useful having him as your servant. I mean, despite how awful he is, he’s still a powerful demon. And I bet you feel worried, being dragged down here to the Devildom and all. So, I don’t think it would end up being a bad deal for you, either. Don’t you agree?”

I paused, thinking. He wasn’t entirely wrong. So far my time here, which hadn’t even been a full day, had been a complete and utter shit show. And even though Mammon was supposedly my guardian, with how quickly he left me today, I’m not quite sure how much I could trust him to help in a truly serious situation.

“How would I go about doing that?” It couldn’t hurt to ask.

He grinned at me. “I take it this means you think this plan of mine could work, right?  ** Excellent ** . You may be a human, but still… you show some promise! Regardless, if I’m being honest, I don’t really care what  ** you ** think. What’s important is that  ** I ** have a plan, and I’m going to explain it to you now. So, shut up and listen.”

“If you just walk up to Mammon and ask him to make a pact with you, he’ll never agree. No, you need some leverage… a  ** bargaining chip ** . You’re going to offer him something in return… Something he wants so badly that he’d do ANYTHING to get it. And Lucifer has just that thing. I’m referring to Mammon’s credit card, which Lucifer confiscated.”

I laugh before remembering that Mammon is the Avatar of Greed and that a credit card, in his eyes, would be free money.

“You laugh, but he used to call it his ‘one true love’. I’m fairly certain he thought it was a woman. He probably named it. I bet he even slept with it. Gross. Anyway, that idiot used it constantly. Never stopped. Eventually, Lucifer had had enough of his behavior, so he confiscated it. There is nothing Mammon wouldn’t do to get his card back, I’m sure of it. So, listen up. I want you to talk to Lucifer and find out where he’s hidden it. Of course, he can’t suspect anything. You’ve got to be subtle. Make sure you do a good job, or else!”

Levi turns around in his desk chair to look at his monitors and with that, it seems that he is done with me. Except, I don’t know where anything is here.

“What are you still doing here, human? Go away.”

I try not to take offense at him calling me human. “I don’t know where my room is.”

“Can Mammon not do anything right? It’s downstairs by the kitchen. You’re wasting my time. It already took long enough to explain everything to you, now leave, human. I’ve got to focus on this raid or I won’t have another shot until tomorrow.”

I am tired of being called human, and being talked down to, and just plain tired from not getting sleep. And everything was adding up and I was getting ready to boil over. “Well, Mammon was in the middle of giving me a quick tour when you burst in threatening to kill him, causing him to abandon me to you. I literally got as far as the entryway. So aside from the walk to your room, which I likely couldn’t make again, I've seen nothing. But you know what? Don’t worry about me, a  _ mere human _ . I’ll figure shit out on my own. God knows I'm used to it.” I snapped as I walked out, slamming his door.

Luckily for me, it was easy enough to find my way back to the main stairs. I was also lucky that I didn’t come across anyone because even with trying my hardest to remain calm, tears were streaming down my face. I caught a glimpse of the sky outside and it was still dark with the stars and the moon out. Unable to tell what time it was, and not wanting to pull out my D.D.D., I continued on, clueless. After what felt like 20-30 minutes of wandering downstairs, tears streaming down my face all the while, I found the kitchen. And right next to it, my room.

I had barely made it into my room and closed the door before I collapsed to the floor, sobbing. It was the ugly kind of sob that left you gasping for breath and feeling like you were going to die. It had been a couple of months since my last panic attack. But here I was, collapsed on the floor, leaning against the door, unable to calm down. I sat there for hours, in the dark, unaware of the demon on the other side of the door.

By the time I manage to calm down I realize I am shrouded in darkness. The only light from the moon peeking through the windows. I pull out my D.D.D. in an attempt to shed some light to look for a switch of some sort. I find one near the door and flip it on. Fairy lights and lanterns brighten up my room.

The room… was gorgeous. It helped to soothe my emotions, if only slightly, to know that I had my own private oasis. It seemed to be my own little suite. The door opened into what looked like a private dining/study area with an ornate table in the middle that was big enough to fit six people. The floors were old, dark wood, and the walls were stone. It would have almost been creepy if it were not for the canopy of greenery, white and lavender flowers, and fairy lights.

The walls of the entry room were lined with shelves and dressers of various shapes and sizes. All except the right wall which was actually an archway with two trees bordering the entrance to my bedroom. My breathtaking bedroom. My bed sat against the wall opposite one of the trees, the frame seemingly made of the tree roots, twisted to fit the swirly design. Pillows and blankets in various shades of purple and white were all over the bed and the floor near giving it the look of a fluffy cloud.

Resisting the urge to go jump on the bed is difficult. But I want to completely investigate my surroundings. The wall opposite my bed is occupied by a large flat screen tv on top of a console table matching the look of my bed. In the corner of my room, beside my bed on the opposite side of the leafy green wall, is a dressing area. Multiple different large ornate gold mirrors sit around a small pedestal, fairy lights draped over their borders. A female dress form mannequin sits in the corner dressed in what is, presumably, my new school uniform. 

Beside the mirrors sits another archway, this one separated by a white gossamer curtain. I pull the curtain to the side and notice a place to tie it up. To the left, is a closet, and to the right, my bathroom. The closet is spacious with plenty of storage, and to my surprise, already full of MY clothes. I notice a couple of extra things I didn’t own before and make a note to inspect everything closer a little later. I turn to the bathroom side and immediately, my attention is drawn to the claw-footed tub. The tub has its own little alcove with a white lace curtain, currently pulled open. There is a shelf with towels and various bathing oils and bombs and soap. The sink is a pedestal sink with another beautiful gold framed mirror. And in the center of it all, the vanity of all vanities.

All the little details are perfect. The golden accents, the gossamer and lace curtains, the lavender, the trees, the fairy lights. My inner artist is screaming inside. I, however, was pissed off. Again.

Looking back through the room again I notice little details of my items. Someone had gone through my belongings. My toiletries are in the bathroom. My clothes are unpacked in my closet. My art supplies are in the front entryway, set up on shelves and in dressers, with my easel in the corner, hidden upon walking in, by the tree. It was only upon closer inspection of the bed that I noticed two letters. One in the same red envelope with the golden writing and red raven seal as before. Lord Diavolo. And the other a black envelope with black ribbon wrapped around and stamped with a golden star seal.

I grab Lord Diavolo’s letter first. And, since I don’t know where my letter opener is, I tear it open, wincing as I do.

_ Dear Arabella, _

_ I would again like to welcome you to the Devildom. I hope you settle in well and that you have a positive experience during your year-long stay. I also feel the need to further stress the importance of this exchange program. This program has been my dream for years now, and finally, we are seeing that dream become a reality. _

_ I don’t think it needs to be said, as you seem to be a bright young woman, however, should anything happen during this program to any of the exchange students we have, especially you, our only non-magic human, the consequences would be dire. I trust you will keep this in mind as you begin your first day of classes tomorrow. _

_ I have attached your class schedule. We tried to make sure some of your interests were included in the courses. You will have private Daemonic lessons most mornings, every other class will be with other students. _

_ Yours Truly, _

_ Lord Diavolo, Future King of Devildom _

I read over his letter and realize that I am trembling. Of course I had thought it would be pretty bad if something happened. But I also could not, for the life of me, understand why they would choose someone like me if that was the case. Why choose a defenseless, magicless, human, when so much rides on this little ‘experiment’?

I take little comfort knowing the brothers will help me out. I know they are supposed to. But, after what I have seen, it's hard to imagine them being selfless. If there is nothing to benefit them, I mean nothing.

I shake out the dark thoughts beginning to cloud my mind and pull out and unfold my class schedule.

###  Class Schedule

Art_________________Mon 1:00-3:00pm/Wed 12:30-1:45pm/Thur 2:00-4:00pm

Astronomy & Astrology_______________________Mon/Tue/Thur 10:00-10:45am

Daemonic_________________________________Mon/Tue/Thur/Fri 9:00-9:45am

Demonology____________________Tue 11:00-11:45am/Wed/Fri 10:00-10:45am

Potions_____________________________Tue 1:00-3:00pm/Thur 12:00-1:45pm

Self-Defense- Hand to hand & Fencing__________________Wed/Fri 2:00-4:00pm

Six courses. A full course load. I am both apprehensive and a little excitedly curious about what tomorrow would bring. Tomorrow. I would be attending a school filled with demons, two angels, and one other human. But a magical human. A sorcerer.

I didn’t even know sorcerers existed. How do they live in the modern world? With phones and laptops and trains and planes. What would you use the magic for?

I took a steadying breath. I was getting ahead of myself. I fold the letter and schedule and put them back in the envelope, before turning my attention onto the black envelope. I open it in the same way, wishing I had my letter opener so I don’t have to ruin the pretty seal. And then proceed to read it.

_ Dear Arabella, _

_ I hope you have been able to settle in well. I took it upon myself to help by assigning some of my minor demons to assist in unpacking some of your belongings. All of your boxes and furniture are stored away. I will show you where in the morning if you have need of anything. _

_ I wanted to go over some ground rules with you that we did not have a chance to discuss before you were pulled away by my idiot of a brother, Mammon. _

  1. _There is a curfew. I do not see myself to be unreasonable, however, you are still a student at the academy, and therefore must be in the house no later than midnight. And that is pushing it._
  2. _My brothers and I rotate cooking duty. We have a chart and each has specific days in which we are in charge of preparing dinner. You will be added to that list. Breakfast and lunch are both up to the individual to take care of._
  3. _I do surprise room inspections. They are usually at night, after curfew, to make sure you are in your room and not hiding anything suspicious. Blame my brothers._



_ If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask me or any one of my brothers. I will also assign one of my minor demons to keep an eye on you and help if you need anything. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Lucifer _

I sit there, staring at the letter, a million different things running through my head. I am grateful for him thinking to help. In that regard, he is much kinder than his brother, Mammon, who just abandoned me. However, I feel… violated. My belongings were gone through. Searched. And things that were deemed important were unpacked for me.

My emotions rage on, conflicted. I feel like I am having a war with myself in my own head. The entire situation is frustrating. But I have no control over it. So I need to focus on the things that I do have control of. I take both letters and set them on my table.

I don’t even know what time it is. I missed dinner, that much I knew. I could look at my D.D.D. but I choose to leave it on the bed. I need a bath. My sweater socks are ruined. They are torn and dirty. I feel, just overall, disgusting.

I walk into the bathroom, letting down the curtain separating my bathroom and bedroom. I turn on the bath so that the water is near scalding, and select a lavender bath bomb to try to relax. Once the water is full, I peel off my socks, then my sweater, and the rest of my layers before I draw the lace curtain and sink into the bath.

I don't notice the little black demon run out from where it was hiding in my closet.

After I am a prune from all my soaking, I get out and grab one of the fluffy purple towels off the little shelf. And I head into my closet in an attempt to figure out where everything is so that I can get dressed. It is easy enough to figure out. The little minor demons, or whatever, did a decent job in sorting my clothes based on their purpose. God knows I didn't pack them that way.

I grab a pair of silk, galaxy print, PJ pants with a matching cami and robe. I try to towel dry my hair as best I can before I give up and sink into the bed. My bed. Utterly exhausted from the last couple of days. But mostly today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave me a comment to let me know what you think! I've been having a great time writing it and expanding on the story in the game. If nothing else, it's been killing quarantine time.


	4. The Longest Night

I set an alarm on my D.D.D. and decide to try to get some rest. Closing my eyes, I am whisked away into the dream world.

It starts out nice enough. I’m on a road trip with my family. My dad is driving while my mom is adjusting the song on the radio. My older brother, sitting behind my dad, next to me, leaning forward and laughing with my mom. I was laughing with them until I heard a voice. It was a man's voice calling out.  _ Help me…  _ And with it, an image of two hands gripping what appeared to be an ornately barred door. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and returned to laughing at my brother.  _ H-help me…  _ This time the voice sounded like my mother’s.  _ My daughter…  _ I looked up in time to see a truck smash into the driver’s side of the car, flipping us. And I went flying, my seatbelt, which should have held me in, gone.  _ Help me…  _ the soft voice of a woman. I opened my eyes expecting to have hit the ground by now only to realize I was plummeting to the earth from extremely high up, like a bird shot from the sky. White feathers dotted the sky as I fell. And I had the distinct impression that I should be in pain somewhere in my back… but not my back.  _ Help me… He-help m-me...  _ this time, my own voice echoed back to me. I crashed into the ground, my visions dark. Something had wrapped its way around my throat. Squeezing. I couldn’t breathe.

I can’t breathe. My eyes shoot open, as I cry out, my hands instinctively clawing towards my throat. Tears are streaming down my face as I choke on my sobs. I sit up, momentarily forgetting where I am, before I look over and see my D.D.D. and it hits me. I’m in Hell. I grab my D.D.D. and tap on the screen to check the time. 3:23 AM. I pull my knees to my chest and hug them as I continue sobbing, the sounds becoming muffled against my legs. I eventually manage to calm down and just sit there, tucked into myself.

A soft knock on my door startles me out of myself and my wandering thoughts. Like how I couldn’t recall what the nightmare was about. I get out of bed and pad quietly to my door before pulling it open a crack, revealing no one. I pull the door open more and look into the hall. Still no one. Just as I was about to close the door, my foot brushed against something on the ground. It was a cup of tea sitting on a saucer. 

I picked up the saucer and noticed a little note tucked under the cup. I closed the door to my room and walked over to my table, setting the tea down and pulling out the note. It simply said:

_ Drink Me _

But despite how amazing it smelled, and how comforting a nice cup of tea would be, I am not Alice and this place is not Wonderland. I pick it up and bring it into my bathroom where I dump the tea down the sink. I rinse out the cup before setting it on the small ledge and grab the note again. Lucifer. It was the same, perfect handwriting that I saw earlier in the day from the letter he left me. I stare at it for a minute, trying to figure out why he would have left tea outside my door, before ripping it up and throwing it away.

I look at myself in the mirror and wince. My eyes are bloodshot. My cheeks are puffy. My nose is red. I splash some water on my face and pull my hair up in a ponytail. I might not remember what my dream was about, but I definitely was not going back to sleep tonight. This morning. Whatever.

I think again about Lucifer’s letter. About his rules. The curfew. The first rule made it sound like I just had to be in the house. But the third made it sound like I have to be in my room. I decide to take my chances and go throw on a pair of socks so I’m not wandering the cold floors barefoot. I remember the planetarium and decide to make that my destination, if I can even remember where that is.

I grab my sketchbook and some pencils and quietly sneak out of my bedroom. From what I was able to gather yesterday, I inhabit the only bedroom on the ground floor, while all the brothers’ bedrooms are upstairs. That mostly leaves all the living spaces downstairs. While wandering the halls, I manage to get a generalized layout of the bottom floor.

I make my way back to the planetarium and settle down into one of the velvet chairs. The trickling sounds of the water fountain are soothing as I stare up at the night sky. I sketch a couple of images of constellations and the night sky before I find myself dozing off.

I jolt awake to the ringing of my alarm telling me that it is now 6:00. I stretch out my legs and massage the crick in my neck while yawning. Trying to blink the bleariness out of my eyes, I notice all of my art supplies have somehow ended up dumped on the floor.

Getting up while continuing to stretch, I gather all of my stuff and try to sneak back to my room. I am, for the most part successful, though I do realize after I have already passed by, that the study is lit. I pray that I wasn’t noticed. And whether I am or not, I am not called back.

Walking into my bedroom, I flip on the lights. It is early in the morning, but looking outside, you wouldn’t be able to tell that the time has changed at all. The world is just plunged into darkness eternally. Demons must have some form of night vision. 

I head straight to my closet and change into a pair of workout clothes before going to the middle of my floor to start some yoga. I preferred running in the early morning, but considering my lack of sleep, the fact that it was super dark outside, and that I was a weak human amongst demons, I decided to just stretch myself out.

By the time I was done and getting ready for the day, I could hear sounds coming from the kitchen. Breakfast being made most likely. My stomach was growling, but I wasn’t ready to deal with people. Demons. So I just grabbed a granola bar I had in my bag. 

It took extra time trying to hide the exhaustion in my face with make-up, but I managed. I went for a neutral eye look with a bold red lip to, hopefully, draw the eyes down. I grabbed my uniform off my mannequin, shocked at how perfect it fit. I buttoned up my teal, long-sleeve shirt and tucked it into the matching teal and black plaid skirt provided. The skirt falls just past my fingertips. I grab a long white silk scarf to tie around my collar in a bow. And I decide to do my hair before I throw on my coat. I wouldn’t want to get too hot.

I think about the best way to pull my hair back for the day and decide on a variation of half-up and half-down. I make two buns on either side of the top of my head and make sure the rest of my hair is presentably wavy. A couple of shorter strands wisp in my face.

It’s 7:45 am. My first class would start in an hour and 15 minutes. I am trying to keep my cool, but my nerves are beginning to get the better of me. My heart is pounding in my chest and I feel like I am going to throw up. Or pass out. Maybe both. I definitely want to leave early, but not too early. So instead, I busy myself with making sure my backpack is situated.

My backpack is one of my favorite things. It sounds weird, but it was soothing, for me, to look at. I bought my backpack in a plain white canvas with gold fastenings. It was the kind of backpack that had a pocket in the front that zipped closed, but the main part of the bag scrunched shut with a flap that then buttoned over that. I looked for ages trying to find a new bag for college, struggling to find anything I liked. I ended up deciding to make my own. Aside from the backpack, I had seen a piece of craft paper that had inspired me. I grabbed a piece of the paper and got paints to match. Varying shades of purple, navy, mint, white, and gold. I also got some gold foil. The finished product was a mix between a beautiful sky and a precious stone. Complete with a map of constellations. 

After taking a second to admire my art, I went to double-check my supplies.

Snack, water bottle, writing utensils of all the varieties, binder, paper, sketchbook, schedule, map of campus. I couldn’t think of anything else I would need at the moment, but it was one of those things that you knew, the second you got to class, you would remember something.

I decide to finish getting dressed because there is nothing else I can do to distract myself. I go find a pair of thigh-high black socks to try to cover more of my legs in this skirt with the chilly air. And grab a pair of black heeled ankle booties that I lace up. I look in the mirror, and despite the circumstances, I can’t help but smile at my reflection.

I reach for my jacket and realize it is a jacket dress of sorts. I pull it on and go about the process of buttoning it all the way up, buckling the belt at my waist. The jacket perfectly fits over my skirt, hiding it from view. In terms of school uniforms, I have had worse. This one is actually pretty cute.

I grab my bag, square my shoulders, and make my way out of my room. I am greeted by the sound of Mammon and his brothers bickering before I even make it to the dining room.

“...SHADDUP! You guys gotta learn to respect me more!”

“I’m honestly embarrassed to consider scum like you my older brother, so I try not to think about it.”

I peer around the corner to see who all is in the dining room when an angry Mammon comes bursting by. He notices me and grabs my wrist, yanking me with him.

“Come on, human. We’re going to class early today.”

I let him drag me out of the house with no complaint. Especially since I was trying to figure out how to bring up leaving early in the first place. But then we pass the gate to the House of Lamentation and he still doesn’t drop my wrist, if anything he squeezes it tighter, walking even quicker. Muttering to himself all the while.

“Oww, Mammon, that hurts.” He either doesn’t hear me or doesn’t care as he keeps pulling me along. “Mammon! You’re  ** hurting ** me, let go!” I try to yank my wrist away, and this time he takes notice.

“Tch. Stupid, weak human. Why’d I have to get stuck with  _ you  _ ?” I keep silent as he finally lets go of me, ignoring the jab.

The rest of the walk is quiet with me following a couple of steps behind the entire way there. The dorm is maybe 15 minutes from the main campus area, so it's not a bad walk. Which also means I am about 45 minutes early for my first class.

“Hey Mammon, I don't-” I begin to speak as he keeps walking, disappearing around the corner. “-know where my first class is…” I finish quietly to myself. I get the feeling that if I hadn’t been peering behind that corner as he was storming out that he would have just left for class without me.

I sigh as I pull off my backpack and fish out my schedule and map of campus. Guess it’s up to me to figure out where I'm going.

By the time I manage to find the right building and floor, the halls are beginning to fill with students. Demon students. I try to keep showing my apprehension on my face, but as I pass more and more, it's getting difficult. I know they always say don’t judge a book by its cover, but I think it's fair to do that if they are  _ demons _ , right?

I stop my walking when I notice one of my laces has come undone, and I bend down to fix it. And that's when I overhear two demons across the hall. They are huddled in the shadows and trying to speak quietly to one another. 

“Hey, check it out.  ** That’s ** the human that everyone’s been talking about. You think it's true what they say, that  ** Mammon ** became a babysitter?” They probably don’t even think my  _ pathetic _ _ human _ ears can hear them.

“Well, if so, then I’d say that actually works out great, doncha think? If we wait and strike when he’s not paying attention, he’ll never figure out it was us. C‘mon, we should devour the human before Beel does.”

Just as he says that I straighten up, finished with tying my shoe. And all I see is red. Never once did I think I would get threatened so often in such a short amount of time about being eaten. And not even in a good way. I am just about to go stomping over there when someone calls out to me.

“Hey, you there.” I look around and spot a man with white hair making his way to me. “That’s right, I’m talking to you, the human with that frightened, tormented look on your face that demons love so much. You’re practically screaming ‘Come and eat me! I’m scrumptious!’”

I turn to look to where the other two demons were standing before, only to notice they had vanished. I shoot a glare at the mysterious stranger. But he just continues on. “Your name’s Arabella, isn’t it? This D.D.D. here belongs to you, right? I saw you drop it just now.” He holds out his hand, and in it a D.D.D., except mine had been in my pocket just a minute ago… so how? “Here, take it.” My brow furrows slightly as I reach out to take the device. And sure enough, when I unlock it, it's mine.

He laughs at my expression. “What's with that look? There’s no need to be suspicious of me. My name’s Solomon. I’m an exchange student from the human world, just like you. Nice to meet you, Arabella.”

Not usually one to beat around the bush, I blurt out my question. “How do you know my name?”

“You’re probably not aware of this, but you’re a bit of a celebrity here at RAD right now. Just being an exchange student from the human world makes you special enough. But on top of that, you’ve got an infamous demon like Mammon looking out for you as well.” He pauses as he looks over my shoulder. “...Uh-oh. I’d better get going. See you around, Arabella. Take care of yourself.”

Not at all understanding what that was about, and not wanting to become demon food, I decide to just try to head to my classroom. Unfortunately, I only make it a couple of steps.

“Good morning, Arabella. You’ve become quite the celebrity here, haven't you?”

I turn around to see Lucifer standing behind me. Probably what Solomon was trying to run away from in hindsight. I let out a tired sigh. “Good Morning.”

“Were you able to get a good night's sleep? I have to say, you look a bit more relaxed now. Did the tea help any?”

I silently thank my makeup for doing its job. “Mhmm. Slept… great.” I wasn’t trying to sound convincing, and he definitely didn’t buy it. But he didn’t argue it either.

“Be sure not to let your guard down. I don’t want you to end up getting eaten by some random, lesser demon.” His eyes soften for a fraction of a second, and it almost sounds like he cares. “It would only mean plenty of paperwork for me, and I don’t need that.” Until it doesn’t. I can’t help but feel that he, like Solomon, watched my near encounter with the demons.

“Was that Solomon I saw you talking with earlier? You and he are the only two students from the human world here.” He pauses in thought for a moment. “Seeing as you're both human, it's fine if you associate with him, but know that he  ** can't ** be trusted. He may be a mere human, but he has a ring imbues with wisdom, and he wields powerful magic. He’s the type of man who will try to subjugate even a powerful, greater demon if he gets the chance.”

I’m not stupid, even I could tell something was off about him during our brief encounter earlier, but rather than argue the subject, I bite my tongue and nod. “Duly noted.”

I go to turn around to head to class, taking this as the end of the conversation, before I remember that I need to get information from him. I hesitate, worrying my lip, unsure of how best to approach the subject.

“What is it, Arabella? Is there something you want to ask of me?”

“I… I’d like to know more about Mammon.” I decide to just go for short, sweet, and to the point.

Lucifer raises his eyebrows, seemingly shocked. “Mammon? Why do you want to know about him all of a sudden?” He schools his features. “Still, I guess it’s only natural, considering he’s the one assigned to look after you.”

I wait patiently for him to continue.

“Mammon is my brother. I don’t want to say anything unkind about him. So, I'll try to be sparing in my criticism.” He raises a hand to cover his mouth as he clears his throat. “He’s pure scum. The scummiest sort of scum. Pure, unfiltered, disgusting scum to the point that I’m embarrassed to call him a fellow demon, much less my brother. … So, any particular reason you asked, or were you just curious?”

I stifle a laugh behind my hand at his nonchalantness. “Uh, I was just curious. Trying to learn more about my capt- I mean… guardian. Like, I don’t know, what one thing is most important to mammon?” I mentally facepalm at my attempt to be casual about asking, but if Lucifer notices anything amiss, he doesn’t let on.

“That would have to be money. If you took all of his money away from him, what else would he have left in his life? Nothing. Money can take a lot of different forms, of course. But regardless of the form, as long as Mammon has money, he’ll spend it. There are no limits with him. So, in order to impose limits of my own, there’s a certain form of money I've  ** frozen ** in his case…” A ringing sound fills the air, startling me. Lucifer tries to suppress a laugh. “That's the first bell. Class is about to start. I’ve got to get going and you’d better hurry too. You don’t want to be late on your first day here.”

He turns around and walks back the way he came, and I rush forward trying to find the room of my private Daemonic tutoring class. At the end of the hall, I find the door with the number corresponding to the one on my schedule. I take a deep breath and push it open to reveal a fairly small, rather lax room. It appears to be more of a lounge than a classroom with the bean bags and comfy chairs scattered throughout. One of which was occupied by a man with blond hair. Who, upon hearing the door shut, turned around.

“Satan?”

“Cutting it a little close, aren’t we?” He turns back around, settling back into his bean bag.

“I-I got caught up. First with Solomon and then with Lucifer. Are you- what are you doing here? And where is the teacher?” 

He makes a sound of disgust at Lucifer’s name. “What do you mean, what am I doing here? I’m your Daemonic tutor. Now are you going to stand in front of the door for the entire class, or would you like to come get comfortable so I can do my job?”

I move to settle into a bean bag adjacent to Satan and brace myself for what I can already tell is going to be a long day.


	5. I Keep My Soul

School was… exhausting. By the time I got home, I had barely walked into my room before I had collapsed on my bed. Satan was, unsurprisingly, a rather strict teacher. Still, he got results, so I suppose I couldn’t complain. After our class was over, he escorted me to my Astronomy/Astrology class. The class itself was really cool, however, having enrolled in the middle of the semester, I was behind. Already.

After my Astro class, I had a couple hours of break. Mammon, who had a short break for lunch, ate with me, and then dropped me off at a small room off the assembly hall. Apparently it was the student council's private lounge. I was supposed to sit there and wait until someone stopped by to escort me to my art class later in the afternoon. It seemed I was currently under security detail.

Still, the lounge was comfy enough, if not a little warm, and I had some things to go over in my Daemonic workbook Satan gave me. As well as some Astronomy to start catching up on. Taking off my jacket and laying it over a chair, I rolled up the sleeves of my shirt and loosened the top couple buttons, untying my bow and set to work. I went through various positions while working on my assignments in those two hours, unable to get comfortable. Sitting on the couch, working on my lap or the armrest, sitting on the floor working on the coffee table, reading upside down on the armchair with my legs over the back, and then eventually, laid out on my stomach on the floor with my feet crossed in the air and all my notes strewn around me. That’s how I was laying, working on my Daemonic alphabet, when someone from right over my shoulder said, “I’m glad to see you are so hard at work. I was fully prepared to come in here and find you missing.”

The sudden sound made me flinch, my legs both slamming into the ground and my arms jerking, causing my papers to go flying. I glared up at the intruder. Lucifer. He coughed, trying to hide his laugh while he suppressed his smile. He was crouched right beside me on the floor, apparently, having ninja crept into the room.

Groaning, I pushed myself onto all fours, before settling on my knees. He offered me a hand up but I ignored it in favor of collecting my papers. “I wasn’t aware that was even an option with the new security detail you have on me. That was you right? Because you saw the two demons before Solomon walked over?”

I miss the once over Lucifer gives me, still bent over on the floor gathering my papers, as he replies sharply. “What two demons?” And when I looked back at him, he was standing up with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

I look back down at the floor, flushing. Great. I just made that even worse. I stay silent as I stand and start walking to put my things away. But Lucifer is faster. He has already grabbed my backpack.

“Arabella…” he warns. I will not be getting out of this.

“It was nothing. Really. I just overheard two demons talking about eating me right before Solomon came up and introduced himself.” I sigh before continuing. “But honestly, I think threatening to eat me has kind of lost its weight after hearing it so many times already. They walked away. Nothing happened.”

I look at him expectantly, holding out my hand, and Lucifer silently hands back my bag. I go about putting my things away before a thought hits me.

“Hey, Lucifer. If I don’t have this stupid detail because of those two demons, then why do I have it?” I pause what I am doing and turn to look at him again. He has his back to me and is looking out one of the windows.

Without turning around, he begins speaking. “Because I overheard some demons as well. And I really don't feel like getting stuck with all the paperwork that would likely come of you getting eaten. The last thing I need is you wandering into some dark, secluded area on campus and getting cornered.”

“Hmm. Then I suppose I should thank you. But this is really bloody annoying. I would’ve much preferred the freedom to go back to the House of Lamentation during this break. Maybe taken a nap or something.” I start to fix my uniform before putting on my jacket.

“I thought you said you slept great?” He turns from the window to look at me with a raised brow.

I flush slightly at being caught in such a blatant lie but continue nonetheless. “Just because I may have slept well last night, does not mean today hasn’t been extremely draining. Between Mammon pulling me out of the house first thing in the morning, Satan being my Daemonic teacher, thanks for the heads up on that by the way, and having to catch up to every assignment that has been given in Astronomy and Astrology, even I am apprehensive about my two-hour class. Even if it is art.”

“We will work something out, but in the meantime, you will continue to have a ‘security detail’ as you put it. Now, are you ready? I do have classes of my own to get to after all.”

“Right. Yes. Sorry.” I rush to grab my bag and follow him out the door.

My art class flew by despite being two hours. The theme for the week was self-portraits. We would be testing different styles in our classes this week, and next week, on Monday, we would all have to turn in a self-portrait in our preferred style. I’m pretty sure mine was going to be in watercolor. 

Asmodeus was the one to show up to walk me back to the house. As I walked out of class, I saw him leaning against the wall of the building. He looked up and smiled, waiving.

“Hello darling, Arabella!” He spoke in a singsong voice. And I could hear some of the female demons gushing over him. And glaring at me. Great.

Still, I returned his smile as I walked over to him. “Hello, Asmodeus. Here to walk me home?”

“In just a moment,” He stops me, takes my hand, and twirls me around. “I didn’t get to see how you looked today because my  ** idiot ** of a brother stole you away! You look cute Arabella, I approve. I love the bow.” He releases my hand and pulls me closer to intertwine his arm with mine.

“I’m still not sure if I am sold on the bow. I might try something else tomorrow. But thank you Asmodeus. You don’t look too bad yourself.”

“Oh dear Arabella, everyone already knows I always look perfect. It’s okay, you’ll get used to it.” He leans in close to my ear as he speaks and a blush rises in my face. I try to pull away slightly, but his arm is tight around mine. 

“Say, Arabella, you’re an artist right? If you ever need a muse, look no further than me! You might not be able to capture all my beauty, but any depiction of me is sure to turn out great!”

We continued on, talking and laughing all the way until we got to the gates of the house. I pulled my arm and he reluctantly let go. Suddenly, I was hit by a wave of exhaustion. I made it inside and to my room before I staggered to my bed and collapsed. It occurred to me that I didn’t have dinner last night, or breakfast this morning, and Mammon made me rush lunch so I hardly ate. I just felt so weak and tired.

Before I knew it, I was out like a light. Shoes still on and bag dropped on the floor. I welcomed the sweet embrace of the darkness. Hoping. Praying. To have a dreamless sleep.

I’m not sure prayers are heard in the Devildom.

Through the darkness I began to hear crying. Ugly sobbing. And then a scene appeared before me. An SUV was flipped, upside down. In the front passenger seat, a woman was hanging, sobbing. She was reaching for the man hanging next to her. He was… bleeding. Profusely. He wasn’t responding. When I tried to move closer, I realized I couldn’t move. I was stuck. All I could do was observe. I could not help. 

The woman noticed me and began yelling hysterically, begging me to help her children. I couldn’t move. Tears were running down my face. I didn’t want to be here anymore. I recognized this scene. Or at least, I knew what it was. And I didn’t want to look at the children. Because I already knew what was there. 

There would be a boy, behind the man, hanging. He would have been a young adult. He would have been hanging lifeless, just like the man. And next to him would have been a girl. Young, having just entered her teen years. She would have been hanging too. With a head wound and a wound on her abdomen and back. She would have been bleeding just like that man. But unlike him, her spine was okay. Unlike the boy, her neck was okay.

I started sobbing. I wanted nothing more than to run to the woman screaming for me. She was completely unaware that I was her daughter. Just older. She was completely unaware that everything was about to take a horrible turn for the worse. Even more so than it had.

_ Help me! _

I couldn’t take it. I closed my eyes and just screamed, trying to block the sound out. Trying to block out the desperate cries of a mother. My mother. Her last cries.

“Arabella!” 

I screamed louder. I didn’t want to hear. I didn’t want to remember.

“Arabella! Wake up!” 

It was just darkness now. And the voice. And the screaming. I couldn’t stop screaming.

“ARABELLA!”

One final shout jolts me awake. I am screaming. I am sobbing. I immediately cover my face in my hands. Still unaware of who had woken me.

There was a dip in the bed as whoever it was sat down next to me. I felt a hand on my wrist, pulling.

“Arabella? Are you okay?” Mammon sits there with a face of concern. “I was helpin’ Beel in the kitchen and all of a sudden you started screaming bloody murder. He didn’t wanna leave the food. So here I am. You’re lucky, human, that the Great Mammon is here for ya.”

I slowly sit up and jump into his arms. I don't care that he is a demon, or that he might eat me. I am just relieved to be out of that nightmare. Night terror.

“What d’ya think your doin’, human?”

I just mumble a quiet ‘thank you.’ He gives in and wraps his arms around me. Grumbling all the while.

We sit there for a decent while. At some point he stopped grumbling and both of us just sort of relaxed into the hug. However, my growling stomach cut through our comfort.

“Geez, human. You sound like Beel.” He lets go of me and I get a quick glimpse of his red face before he turns around and walks to my door. “Dinner should be ready soon.”

As he walks out, I get up and stretch my limbs, achy from sitting in the same position for so long. I take off my boots and massage each foot, silently apologizing to them for falling asleep in heels. And walk into my closet to get changed out of my uniform. I avoid looking into the floor-length mirrors on the way.

I find a dirty clothes hamper in the corner and throw each piece of clothing in there as I peel it off. I decide to change into workout clothes so that after dinner I can try to work off some of my frustrations. I grab a pair of navy leggings and a white sports bra. And then, after realizing I now live in a house with, supposedly, seven demon men, I grab a light blue tee with an open, twisted, back. Throwing on some socks to keep my feet from freezing, I go remove my makeup and try to get my face to not look like I’d just spent the past hour crying. It is easier said than done.

Eventually giving up, I braid my hair out of my face and quietly sneak out of my room. The kitchen is empty when I walk by, and I hear chattering in the dining room. I close my eyes and lean my head against the wall behind me, trying to gather the strength I knew I was going to need to face them all. And when I open them, Beelzebub is standing there staring at me.

“Gah! Jesus Christ, Beel! You just about gave me a heart attack. What is it with you demons and your silent footsteps?” It isn’t after I speak the words that I wonder if that might be an offensive term to them. 

“I was going to get more food from the kitchen. You’re the one standing there like a statue. I wasn’t even sure you were breathing for a second.” He walks past me, into the kitchen as he continues to speak. “Why were you standing there, exactly?”

“I, uh, I was trying to work up the nerve to join you all for dinner tonight. I need to eat. I'm starting to get shaky…” And with that I hold up my hands for him to see.

“Well, grab something from here and I’ll eat your plate in the dining room. I doubt anyone would blame you for not wanting to eat in there. Lucifer isn’t even eating with us today. He’s eating in his study while he works. And Levi is eating in his room while he games or something.”

“I think I will… thank you.” I grab a plate before I pause and turn to Beelzebub. “Is there anything I shouldn’t eat here? You know, being a human and all.”

“No, I made sure to use only things that are safe for humans to consume. Lucifer would kill me if I was responsible for your death, and therefore his paperwork.”

I resume grabbing various foods and filling my plate. “Right. Thanks.”

As I turn to walk back to my room, Beel stops me for a moment. “Hey, Arabella. Are you okay? Mammon and I heard you screaming earlier. It sounded like you were being murdered.”

“Oh, y-yeah. I’m… fine. It was just a nightmare. I get them every now and then.” I start to walk towards the door again. “Thank you for the dinner, Beel.”

Back in my room, I set my food on the table and grab my homework before settling in. I don’t know what any of the food is, and I probably don’t want to know, but it is surprisingly tasty. I work on my star charts some as I chow down, knowing it's going to take forever to catch up. Luckily, I got my Daemonic homework done in the lounge earlier, because tomorrow is a new day with Daemonic and Astronomy, along with two new classes.

Hours have passed, me munching on food while charting stars, learning new constellations, and taking all of the notes. I’m interrupted by a ding on my D.D.D. I get up and walk over to where it is on the bed to see I have a message from Levi. A response from when I messaged him about the conversation with Lucifer earlier.

** Leviathan ** : You say Lucifer mentioned having frozen something? Are you absolutely sure 

that’s what he said?

** <<Yup, I’m absolutely sure.>> **

** Leviathan ** : Come to the kitchen. Right Now.

** Leviathan ** : Don’t tell anyone what you’re doing. I don’t want anyone to mistakenly think that I 

hang out with some human normie.

I sigh as I set my D.D.D. back down and grab my plate off the table. I make my way out of my room and into the kitchen. The kitchen is dark save for a small light emanating from the open fridge. Which someone is currently standing in front of. 

I slowly try to back out of the room, pretending I saw nothing, to go back to my room and message Levi telling him Beelzebub was in the kitchen. I didn’t get far, however, when the silverware moved on my plate, alerting him to my presence.

“Not so fast. Are you going to pretend like you didn’t see me here, or is it that you're planning to go  ** tell ** on me? Meh, I guess it doesn’t matter either way. Anyway, what’re you doing in the kitchen so late?”

There is no backing out now, sorry Levi. “Well, aside from washing my plate from earlier, I was kind of hoping to find a small snack and some tea.” I begin to make my way to the sink to wash my dish as he speaks again.

“Ah, you’re hungry? That makes two of us, then. In that case, I understand. When you start feeling hungry in the middle of the night, it’s not like you can just wait until morning to eat.” He pauses to look back in the open fridge before closing it. “Oh, and the refrigerator's empty. I already ate everything in there. What? Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?” I had paused in my scrubbing to look at him.

Something I had realized earlier hadn’t sat right with me. I have come across all of the brothers multiple times. All but one. The youngest. “Who is the seventh brother?”

Beelzebub freezes on the spot, before turning to me, an angry look on his face. “... Now listen, don’t you  ** ever ** mention him in front of Lucifer. Just so we’re clear, I’m not going to tell you anything, either. Lucifer would yell at me if I did. And don’t bother asking any of my brothers, either. No one talks about  ** him ** .” For a brief moment, sadness passes over his face. Grief. But then he is right back to anger. “Even though he’s our brother… we have to treat him like he doesn’t exist… it's not right. But since no one can defy Lucifer. … You know what? This isn’t any of your business, human. I’m leaving. I’ve already eaten everything there was in the refrigerator now anyway. I’m pretty sure Lucifer is hiding a poisoned apple in the desk in the study…”

He storms out and I am left standing at the sink. I finish cleaning the dish and start looking for some tea. I am opening cabinets randomly when the one to the left of me whispers.

“... psst… hey!”

It’s Leviathan. It has to be. “Is that you, God…?” I laugh silently to myself.

My sarcasm goes completely over his head. “Seriously? No! Over here! Look!” He steps out of the cabinet he was hiding in and I notice teacups and tea bags stored on the top shelf.

“Aha! Just what I was looking for. Could you?” I gesture to the cups and tea and he grabs one down for me, along with a selection of random tea bags. I find chamomile and begin to make my tea as I speak again. “What are you doing hiding there?”

“What do you think? Beel was just in here! I can’t have him finding me with  ** you ** , now can I?!”

“So are we just never allowed to be seen together. Even just coincidentally in the same room? So like, if I walk in a room that you are in, will you leave?

Leviathan ignores my questioning. “So, it’s really true, right? Lucifer definitely used the word  ** ‘frozen’ ** ? In that case, it could only be hidden in  ** here ** .”

I sip my freshly brewed tea and sigh in contentment. This is just what I needed. I turn to look at him, now standing directly in front of the fridge. “In the freezer?”

He is already digging inside, moving things around. “Hmm… all I see is a bunch of ice inside… Oh wait, look! It’s the ice cream Satan hid from Beel about a century ago.”  _ Century.  _ “I totally forgot about that. Heh. I’m not about to tell him, though. It’d spoil the joke. He’ll probably figure it out in another 2000 years or so, I’d say. ...what a second.”  _ 2000 years  _ … My brain is struggling to comprehend the time span he had just laid out. And how old the brothers actually are. So much so that I am completely spaced out when I hear him shouting. “There’s something else there behind the ice. Found it!”

My head jerks back up to him, and I see him pull out a large chunk of ice, and in it, a golden credit card. Jackpot.

“Lucifer wasn’t lying. It really IS frozen! Ugh, it's super heavy! And big too! I’m gonna put it in the microwave and thaw it. Let’s see, I guess about two minutes on auto should do the trick. Now, I’ll hit the start button and let the defrosting begin!”

“No no no no, Levi, don’t!” I jump up just in time to stop him from pressing start, my hand holding his wrist.

He jumps back, startled, blushing scarlet to the tips of his ears. “W-W-What are you doing?!”

“If you microwave it, it could ruin the card, and I don’t particularly feel like being murdered by a demon today.” I grab the card and move over to the sink, running hot water over it and slowly melting the ice. When it’s free of ice, I hold it up for Levi to see. “See? Ice-free!”

“What’s with all the racket, you two? … HEY, wait a minute! There in your hand… That looks like Goldie, my credit card! My baby! The one thing more important to me than life itself…! Why do you have it?!” Mammon was standing in the doorway, glaring at us.

Levi snatches the card out of my hand. “Hmm, are you SURE you should be looking at me like that, Mammon? After all,  ** I’m ** the one who found the credit card Lucifer took from you.”

“I think you mean  ** we  ** are the ones who found it,” I say, but I am completely ignored, yet again.

“So, do you want me to give you your card back?” Levi tauntingly waves the card in front of Mammon.

“You’d BETTER! ...Um, I mean, yes, please. Please give it back, Leviathan, sir…!” By the end, Mammon had dropped down to his knees with his hands both clasped in front of him.

“Oh wow, this is embarrassing! I can't believe that's all it took for you to abandon your pride! You're even down on your knees! You’re one of the seven rulers of the Devildom, Mammon. Shouldn’t you be ashamed of yourself?” Levi was obviously enjoying this a bit too much. He was toying with Mammon. “Well, whatever… Okay then, if you want your card back, you’ve got to give me the Seraphina figured you won at the convenience store.”

“The Sera… what now? What’re ya talkin’ about? I don’t remember winnin’ anything.”

I decide to go back to sitting down, drinking my tea. I could wait until they got to the part that involved me. For now, I could just sit back and enjoy the show.

“I don’t believe this! You forgot that you even have her! How could you?!” Leviathan was radiating power in his anger.

“Ugh, c’mon, enough!  ** Whatever you want ** , I’ll give it to ya! Just give me back my credit card!” Mammon was still on his knees, begging, but he had slowly begun to inch closer to Leviathan.

Still, Mammon's words seemed to satiate Leviathan. “All right, but there’s one more condition:  ** I want you to make a pact with this human. ** ” My turn!

Mammon started to get up, excited. “Right, a pact, fine. I’m more than happy to do whatever you…” Until he realized what he was being asked of. He jumped up and his voice was beginning to rise. “...wait WHAT?! Why d’ya want ME to make a PACT?!”

“Think about it: If you make a pact with Arabella, you’ll have to do whatever you’re told, right? Then Arabella’ll order you to give me my money back immediately. And since you can’t refuse a direct order from your master, you'll do exactly that.  ** Game over, I win ** !”

“Pff, I don’t believe this. It’s just money, Levi I can't believe you’d go through all this trouble.” Mammon scoffs.

Leviathan and I speak at the same time, with my, “Wow, Mammon. I never thought I would hear those words from the Avatar of Greed.” And his “Excuse me? Remind me again which one of us tossed aside what little pride he had left, all to get his hands on a  ** credit card ** ?” melding together.

“Hey, you shut up! And you, human! What’re ya thinking, lettin’ Levi use you like that? Are you stupid? Go on, say somethin’!”

I want to argue his calling me stupid and Levi using me, but I settle for just saying “Make a pact with me, Mammon.”

“UH-UH, NO WAY! NOT INTERESTED! I am the Great Mammon, Avatar of Greed, one of the seven rulers of the Devildom! Fool, do you actually think I’d let some  ** human ** be the boss of me?”

I am about to make a snappy retort when Leviathan begins to yell. “Oh  ** Luuucifeeer ** ! Mammon’s here unfreezing his credit caaaard!” 

Mammon panics and slams his hand over Levi’s mouth. “I mean,  ** of course ** I’ll make a pact with you, human!  ** I’d be thrilled to! ** ”

And with that, there is a searing pain on my back. I gasp and collapse into the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work is getting ready to start back up for me and I have been crazy busy getting everything ready... That being said, I've run through my completed chapters... So I will be on a, hopefully, short hiatus. I wanna take the time to really lay out where I see this all going and get a little more organized so that I can keep up with regularly posting while also working.
> 
> If you guys have any ideas on where I should take this, or anything I should add to the story, feel free to share! :)


	6. Scars

I brace myself against the table, wincing. I figured there had to be some way to seal the pact, but I didn’t imagine it to be this painful on my end. Mammon, doesn’t seem affected at all. If anything, he seems confused as to why I reacted the way I did.

“Hey, uh, ya good, human?” He reaches out to put a steadying hand on my back, but almost immediately removes it when I wince.

I reach out to my cup of tea with shaky hands, trying to reign in the pain. And if I am to be honest, wrap my head around the fact that I just made a pact with a demon. I miss the brief, shocked exchange between Mammon and Levi.

Suddenly, I am being twisted around and the open back of my shirt is being pulled to show my left shoulder.

“Hey…! What the fuck?!” My teacup slips out of my hands and splashes down my front before shattering on the floor. “God dammit! What’s the big idea?”

Mammon reaches around and shows me his hand, covered in blood. “Your left shoulder blade is covered. It was seeping through your shirt.”

That’s where the pain is… “What is it? What do you see?”

“Well… it looks like ya just got yourself a new tattoo.”

I spin around, facing both of them now. “What?!”

“It-It’s the manifestation of your pact bond.” Levi’s brows furrow as he speaks. He looks completely perplexed. 

The confused look on Leviathan is unsettling. Not only is he a demon, but he is also the demon who pushed me into this. So he should understand what is going on here.

“What's with that look, Levi?”

“It’s just that… if a human doesn’t have magic, the pact bond usually manifests itself in a physical item...” Levi trails off, seemingly lost in thought.

Mammon chimes in where Leviathan left off. “Yeah, like little trinkets. Charms on a bracelet, ear piercings, rings, dog tags on a chain, those little friendship bracelet things, the anklet versions of friendship bracelets, I’m pretty sure one time I saw--” He ticks off his fingers as he lists things.

“Thank you. Mammon. I think I get it.”

“Usually only magical humans get markings like brands or tattoos.” Leviathan is looking me up and down as if trying to see magical wisps floating away from me.

“But… that doesn’t make any sense. I’m about as magicless as they come.” As I speak, I bend down to pick up the pieces of the shattered teacup.

Mammon bends down with me and gives me a look. “Try tellin’ that to your fresh new tattoo. There’s obviously somethin’.”

The kitchen lapses into silence as Mammon and I clean up the mess and Levi stands there, almost dazed.

I let out a long sigh. “I really don’t have the mental energy to deal with this right now… Mammon, you have until tomorrow morning to give Levi back the money you borrowed. And Seraphina.” At this I turn to look at Leviathan, who seems to be shaking himself out of it and is looking at me excitedly like he can't wait to actually get what this whole plan was for in the first place. “Though honestly, Levi, you might have to find her yourself since it seems Mammon is clueless as far as she goes.” 

“It’s Seraphine! No -a. Geez, you’re such a normie! And Mammon, I am hanging on to your credit card until you completely fulfill your end of the bargain and pay me back.” Levi turns and begins to walk out of the kitchen.

“Wh- Hey! What’s the big idea?! I did hold up my end of the bargain! I made the stupid pact and you’re gettin’ ya stupid Seraphina doll or whatever. So give me back my Goldie!”

I walk up to Levi and hold out my hand. “A deals a deal. You will get your money.” He reluctantly hands it over and walks away.

I turn back to Mammon, who is practically bouncing up and down in excitement, and hold out his card. “Here, take it.” He snatches it out of my hands and is about to leave himself when I stop him. “Also, Mammon, since you are the one who caused the new tattoo, you are helping me care for it. Come on.” Without even waiting for a response, I grab his wrist and pull him along behind me.

“Hey! I’m followin’! You don’t have to pull me, sheesh.”

“Now you know how I feel all of the time.” I let go of his wrist once we are in my room and walk to my bathroom, carefully peeling off my shirt as I go.

“What’re ya doin’?! Put that back on!” I turn around and see Mammon’s face flush bright red just before he turns away.

“Oh my God, Mammon. It’s not like I am naked. I am completely covered. Now get your arse in here and help me wash my tattoo.”

I walk up to the sink in my bathroom and find a good soap to use. “I just need you to gently wash it with this soap and some warm water. Rinse it, lightly pat it dry, and you are good to go.” I turn to look at him standing in the curtained doorway, still blushing, and refusing to look at me. “Come on, Mammon. I can’t do it myself because it’s on my back.”

“Fine, human. The Great Mammon will wash your tattoo for ya. You should be more grateful.”

“You are the reason there is a tattoo I have to get washed in the first place. That blood better come out of my shirt, by the way.”

Mammon finally comes up behind me and I turn around, looking at him in the mirror while showing him my back. He’s still red, but at least now he will look at me.

“I didn’t want a pact! Ya forced me into it!”

“Leviathan forced you into it. I was just kind of along for the ride.”

“So then blame Leviathan! Not me!”

“Fine. Will you wash my back now?”

Mammon grumbles, but still reaches around me to the sink to wet his hands, and more gently than I thought possible from a demon, he begins to rinse my back. I am surprised to find that it doesn’t hurt to the touch anymore. Maybe magical tattoos heal a lot faster.

He works in silence, rinsing my back, lathering it with soap and then rinsing it again, before finally lightly patting it dry.

“Thank you, Mammon.” I go to turn around to face him but a light touch of his on my back causes me to freeze.

“How did you get this?” He runs his fingers partially down the length of a long scar before realizing where it ends and pulls his hand away, flushing yet again.

The scar starts in the middle of my upper back and ends just under my breast and is a pale, almost silvery indentation into my skin. I cross my arms, suddenly feeling exposed. I consider telling him I don’t remember, but the scar is big enough that I wouldn’t likely have forgotten.

“Car accident when I was younger.”

Before he has the chance to ask me any more questions, I turn around and look at him. “Thank you again for washing my tattoo. Don’t forget that you owe Leviathan by breakfast tomorrow morning.”

“Are ya kickin’ me out now?!” Mammon looks offended. “I literally just washed your bloody back and now you’re kickin’ me out?”

I take a second to weigh my options on how to respond. And then I grab the hips of my leggings and start to slowly push them down.

“Well, unless you would like to stay and watch me change, then yes. Goodbye.” I lift one hand in a small mock wave.

Luckily, this has the desired effect. “Gah…! I’m goin’, I’m goin’!” Mammon goes beet red before turning around and storming out.

I rush after him and lock the door the second he is gone. And then I collapse against it, sliding down to the floor. I run my hands over my face, trying to wrap my head around my mixed emotions, and pause with my finger on my forehead. On another scar. I can’t see it now, but I know exactly what it looks like. Just in the hairline above my right eye, is another silvery scar. It’s small and hardly anyone ever notices, especially when I wear makeup. But I know where it is.

I shake my head, trying to get rid of the thoughts rising in it, and I use the doorknob to pull myself up. I need to just stop thinking. I need to have to focus solely on breathing. I need to run. But I can’t. Because it’s too fucking dark and I am too fucking weak.

I begin pacing around my room trying to work out what I can do in this hell hole. As I walk past my bed, the three large ornate mirrors catch my eye, along with my reflection in them. I turn around until I can see my back, my new tattoo, and my blood-stained white sports bra. I sigh, knowing that, by this point, it's going to be tough to get the stain out completely.

I study my tattoo and have to say, it's beautiful. And right up my alley. The tattoo covers a decent portion of my left shoulder and is a constellation over a watercolor background of blues and yellow-golds. I know without a doubt that the constellation depicts a coin. A Grimm to be precise. And it symbolizes my pact with the Avatar of Greed. Aside from the main black stars that make up the constellation, some small white stars dart the area as well. 

I reach over my shoulder to touch it and I'm surprised to feel that it isn't raised at all. In fact, It looks as if it's completely healed. Maybe even a year or so old just like the phases of the moon that I have down my spine. Or any of the other couple tattoos I have gotten in the past two years.

I guess magical tattoos do heal quickly. Which, I guess means I don’t have to worry about caring for it. Or getting too sweaty. Keeping that in mind, I decide to go change so that I can try to soak the stain out of my bra. I grab a light pink sports bra and a white tee shirt with an open back that reads ‘I’ve got 99 problems but ugly gym clothes ain’t one’. My pants, luckily, managed to stay blood-free. 

I throw my shirt and bra into the sink to soak and go grab my cell phone from the human world. It doesn’t work, but at least it has music on it, unlike my D.D.D. I would have to ask someone about that. I grab my earphones and turn my music on as I walk around the house, trying to figure out what I can do to help get rid of some of my pent up energy. I am debating on just running around the inside of the house when I walk past the back stairwell. It wasn’t ideal, especially considering all the portraits staring down at me, but considering I couldn’t run outside, running the stairs seemed the next best thing.

I’m not sure how long I spent running up and down and back up again. But by the time I am done, I am drenched in sweat, and my chest is heaving while I gasp for breath. I decide, rather than make my way back to my room immediately, to plop down on the bottom step. I take a moment to catch my breath before leaning my elbows on my knees. I hang my head and massage my neck, which seems to have only gotten tenser as time has passed.

Sitting like that, with my earbuds in and music blasting, I don’t hear the quiet voice that tries to interrupt my thoughts. I do, however, eventually, notice the shoes that have stepped into my line of sight.

“Jesus Christ!” I jerk my head up as I rip out my earbuds. And standing in front of me is Lucifer.

He has a wry smile on his face as he says, “Just the opposite actually.”

His joke catches me off guard, but I can’t help that laugh that escapes my lips. “Sorry… Old habits and all that.”

He merely shakes his head at my apology. “As I was trying to ask before, what are you doing awake at this hour?”

I furrow my brows, completely unaware as to what time it even is. Taking in his appearance though, I can tell he is completely exhausted. “Honestly? I’m not sure what time it even is right now. It’s always so damn dark.”

“Don’t you have a D.D.D. for that then?”

I shake my head as he gestures to the headphones. “Human world phone. Doesn’t work worth shit down here, but it has all my music. And I’m pretty sure-” I click on my screen to show a time of 2:42 pm, “-that it's not late afternoon right now judging from your expression. My D.D.D. is in my room, I think. Maybe the kitchen? I don’t know.”

I stop rambling as Lucifer drops down onto the stair next to me. I look over at him, and, if I didn’t know any better, I would say his expression is cute. Endearing. I think I know better. In either case, I turn away from him and look down at my hands.

“It’s just after four in the morning.” The simple statement does surprise me. I knew it had to be late, or early I guess. But I wasn’t expecting it to already be four.

“And what about you, why are you still awake at this hour?” Deflecting questions is sometimes the best answer.

“That is hardly any of your concern. And also besides the point considering we were talking about you.”

“Don’t you think it's a little hypocritical of you to lecture me on being awake when it looks like you are just now on your way up to your own room for the first time tonight?” I finally turned my attention back to him only to see him glaring at me. He obviously does not enjoy being challenged. But I also wasn’t wrong. I noticed the moment I saw him, but Lucifer was oddly disheveled. I may not know him well personally, but he does not seem to be the type to let others see him like this if he can help it. 

Lucifer is still, mostly, in his RAD uniform. He has his jacket off and folded over his arm on his lap. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows and his shirt has been unbuttoned some. His hair looks like he's been running his hands through it all night.

“Seriously though, you look exhausted, why are you still awake?” I know I should probably drop it, but, you know, curiosity.

“Paperwork for the student council and Lord Diavolo. But I am a demon and can deal with missing a night's sleep.” I go to speak but he holds up his hand, silencing me. “And no, I do not find it to be hypocritical in this instance. As I have said, I am a demon. You are merely a human. You are much more fragile and more liable to break.”

“I appreciate the concern, but I think I know my own limitations more than you do. Besides, this human can handle a lot more than you would think.” I stand up from the step, beginning to get angry. I reach down to grab my phone when he grabs my left wrist.

“Like your scars?”

I freeze like a deer in the headlights, and Lucifer takes that as a go-ahead to continue. “I noticed the one on your forehead when you were on the phone with Mammon the day you arrived. Then, yesterday when you were in the student council room trying to get your bag back from me, I noticed this one here on your wrist.” He runs his finger gently down a long, thin scar with a tattoo saying ‘keep going’ over it. “And then earlier, after your little late-night get together with Mammon, he came running to my office to tell me about a big scar he saw on your back. I’m not even going to ask what you were doing to where he saw that.”

“It wasn’t… we didn’t-” I cut off, at a loss of how to even respond.

“And so for the third time I will ask you, what are you doing awake at this hour?”

I pull my hand out of his grasp and pick up my phone. “Would you believe me if I said I’m not tired?”

“No.”

I sigh, before I sit back down on the step, dropping my head into my hands. I take a second to breathe and weigh what I should say before I look back up at him.

“I’ve been struggling to sleep. I don’t know if it's because of jetlag, stress, nightmares, whatever. I’m sure with time I’ll be fine. Tonight I was just so- so wound up that I wouldn’t have been able to sleep even if I tried. And since I am not allowed out of the house, running the stairs was the next best thing to work through my pent up frustrations.”

Lucifer looks me over once before nodding. He sighs as he stands up and begins to walk up the steps. He stops a couple of steps up before turning back around and looking down at me.

“Just try to get at least a couple hours of sleep. You can’t really afford to be tired.” And with that lovely lasting remark, he turns around and continues up the stairs and out of sight.

I sit there for a moment more before getting up and walking back to my room. I know better than to think I will be getting any sleep tonight. My brain still hasn’t slowed down any. And just go ahead and add the conversation with Lucifer to the mix of things currently swimming around in my head.

Instead, I decide to go draw myself a bath. I add in some Epsom salts to help soothe my now aching muscles. As the water is filling up I go scrub some at my bloody clothes, happy to see that it's mostly come out now. With a wash, they should both be good as new. And then I strip before stepping into the scalding hot water.

It takes a moment before I can lower myself fully into the tub. And once I am, I allow myself to soak for a while before I scrub myself clean and get out. I dry off my body and start to towel dry my hair before I give up and decide to just blow dry it. Wrapping my towel around my body, I walk into my bedroom to try to find my D.D.D. to see what time it is. Just as I am reaching for it, my 6 am alarm starts going off.

I exhale heavily at what is going to be a long day and walk back into the bathroom to begin getting ready. I do my hair in twin fishtail braids before moving on to my makeup. I try to use the same tricks as yesterday to hide my exhaustion, except today, I also add some eyeliner to the look.

I walk into my closet to try to find my backup uniforms again. It doesn’t take long, but when I pull them out, I realize they are all slightly different. I grab one with a red tulle skirt and lace overlay, that when on with another dress jacket, makes it a little poofier. I grab a red scarf that I tie into a bow around the collar and a pair of polka-dot black tights. I finish the look off with a pair of black heeled knee-high boots.

By the time I am dressed and ready, it is 7:15. I gather up all my school work strewn across my table and decide to sit and sketch a bit. I know I want to try to do my self-portrait in watercolor, but I’m still not sure what I want it to look like. Do I want it to just be my face? Bust? Full torso length? Do I want it to be realistic or more of an inner self-portrait? The more I try to figure it out, the more confused I get.

I get up, grab my bag, and head out of my room, leaving my sketches on my table to look over later. Walking down the hallway from my room to the dining hall, I can hear Asmodeus bursting out in peals of laughter. He seems genuinely amused and my guess at what it is about is confirmed by Satan speaking.

“Asmodeus, keep your voice down. If Mammon hears you, he’ll get upset again, and we won’t hear the end of it.”

At this point, I am standing in the doorway, taking in the scene before me. Despite a table that had room to seat ten people, they all sat together. Satan sat next to Asmodeus with Levi sitting across from them with one seat space between him and Beel. Asmo continued on talking, oblivious to me standing there.

“Eh, he won’t be awake for a while. He’s really not a morning demon, you know? And anyway, how can you NOT laugh after what’s happened? I mean, this is Mammon, and yet a human was able to play him like a fiddle and force him into a pact.”

I watch Satan cover his mouth with his hand to try to stifle his laughter as I walk in to sit down next to Asmodeus, who looks over at me before hearing Satan laugh.

“Hey, I hear you laughing, Satan! I know you think it’s funny, too!”

I hear Beel murmur something to himself and then Leviathan respond with, “Beel, calm down. You’re biting off chunks of your plate along with your food.”

I look over, and sure enough, Beel eating is kind of terrifying. I can completely understand how he could eat a human whole. And that thought doesn’t sit well. Having lost my appetite, I decide to excuse myself to go make a cup of tea. It takes a couple of minutes to let it steep properly and I can hear Asmo and Satan laughing the entire time.  
When I walk back into the room, Asmo turns to me. “Anyway, I have to say I’m surprised. I never thought an average human like you would be able to make a pact with Mammon--certainly not THIS fast. I guess they really did know what they were doing when they picked you for the exchange program, huh?”

I try to ignore the slight jab at being called an average human and just shrug. ”I did what I could, that’s all. Besides, I didn’t even do a whole lot. It was mostly Leviathan.”

Satan just laughs. “Levi here already told us everything, so there’s no need to be humble about it. We’re not upset. Honestly, we think it's pretty funny.”  
I couldn’t even imagine what sort of convoluted version of the truth Levi told them to make Satan say that. Or maybe it really was that impressive. Either way, it didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me.

“All I know is that I finally got Mammon to give me back my money. So I couldn’t ask for a better outcome! Epic win for Leviathan! I should’ve rounded up a random human and done this sooner! Now I’ll be able to buy the Blu-ray box set of Journey to the Devildom: The Tale of a Little She-Devil and her Reluctant Companion! The initial round of copies includes promotional tickets to a live event as a special bonus! That live event is going to be soooooo epic!”

Asmodeus turns to look at Levi as he practically bounces in his chair from excitement and then looks at Satan. “You know, I find it surprising enough that Arabella managed to make a pact with Mammon… but what’s even more shocking is the team-up with Levi that helped make it happen. Don’t you think?”

“Yep, I never thought I’d see the day that a human won over Levi, but here we are.”

Satan says it in a way that makes it seems like he’s baiting a trap. And Leviathan falls for it hook, line, and sinker. His face flushing as he speaks. “Excuse me?! Don’t go getting the wrong idea. Nobody won me over! Our interests just happened to align, that’s all! The relationship was purely business! I mean, why would I want anything to do with some non-otaku normie of a human? I wouldn’t! I mean, I’m spoken for! I’m no cheater! M-M-My one true love is--”

“Cheeseburgers.” Beel sighs with a grin on his face.

I try to cover my mouth to keep from spraying the tea I just took a sip of across the table, and all that comes out instead is a sort of choking sound.

I am completely ignored as Levi continues. “No! That’s YOUR one true love, Beel!”

“Mm… I get hungry just thinking about them…”

Asmo turned to me, trying to get back to the conversation at hand. “You know, the way things are going, the rest of us might just find ourselves in a pact with Arabella if we’re not careful. If you had a choice, which one of us would you forge a pact with next, Arabella?”

It is a trick question. There is no right or wrong answer. If I pick them, they will be upset that I think I could trick them like I did Mammon. If I don’t pick them, they will get upset that I don’t think they are good enough. Still, I weigh my options as I try to think of who to pick.

“I’m not sure I want to answer that question. But just for shits and giggles, who are my options?”

Satan raises an eyebrow as he looks around the table. “Let’s just say out of Beel, Asmodeus, and myself.”

“Hmmm, well, I would probably have to go with Asmodeus.” Pleasing the narcissist seems to be the best option.

“Yes, I’m not surprised you want me all to yourself. And I understand. Believe me, I do. All too well… Humans just can’t help themselves when confronted with someone beautiful and alluring, can they? Oh, but just because I said I understand, that doesn’t mean you actually have a chance with me. Because I’m not the least bit interested in forming a pact.”

I try to interject to say that I am also not interested in any more pacts, but Asmo just continues on. “You won’t be able to tame us as easily as you did Mammon, Arabella. In fact, it’s quite offensive of you to think we’re as stupid as that poor excuse of a demon.”

All I could do was watch as a blur zipped into the room and knocked Asmo in the back of the head.

“OW! Why’d you hit me?! I can’t believe you actually STRUCK my beautiful, beautiful head! Not even Lucifer has ever done something like that! Why are you always getting so VIOLENT with me, Mammon?!”

Mammon, now visible since he stopped moving, is standing behind Asmo and Satan with his hands on his hips. “That was for callin’ me a poor excuse for a demon, you peabrain! Actually, I oughta hit all of ya, the way you talk about me. Y’all think you’re so great.”

“I was just trying to drink my tea in peace…” I murmur into my mug.

“It’s not that we think we’re so great.” Satan turns to look at Mammon behind him.

Asmodeus builds off of Satan, further aggravating Mammon. “No, not at all. We just think you’re a complete and utter fool.”

“HEY, that’s even worse! Don’t treat me like I’m stupid!”

The room then proceeded to devolve into insults being thrown this way and that, with the main target being Mammon. Only Beel, who was busy eating the food from my plate, and I were staying out of it.

“I hate every last one of you. None of this would have happened to begin with if it weren't for that bastard Lucifer! It's all because he took my credit card from me! He just snatched Goldie away--kidnapped her against her will!”

“Ugh, don’t talk about your credit card like it's a person. It's gross.” Leviathan made the same point yesterday and I couldn’t deny that it was a little weird. And apparently, neither could Asmo as he made a sound of agreement.

I look up at Mammon and freeze as I see Lucifer standing in the doorway behind Mammon, a murderous glint in his steely gaze. I try to get Mammon's attention, to stop him from ranting, but it is no use.

“SHUT UP, both of ya! Also, I can’t believe that when he said he froze it, he meant that LITERALLY! Who sticks a credit card in the freezer?! What’s up with that?! Was it supposed to be some sorta dad joke?! ‘Cause if so, it was awfully lame! Eh, I guess maybe I shoulda expected somethin’ like that from him. I mean, he may not be a dad, but he’s pretty old, isn’t he? Guess I shouldn’t be surprised he’s a fan of dad jokes. ” Mammon dissolves into hysterical laughter.

And Lucifer can be heard laughing darkly behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as I was writing this chapter, it kind of morphed into something I wasn't entirely planning. That being said, I want to shout out to House of Halation and their work A Year and a Day. In it, rings are used as a sign of a pact being formed and it inspired me to add more to my original pact tattoo idea. That being said, A Year and a Day is really good and you should definitely check it out! :)


	7. Angels and Demons and Me

Mammon is absolutely oblivious. You would think he would have developed some sort of Lucifer detecting sense by now, but even in the same room, he can’t sense him. And he is the only one.  
“Haha! Man, I gotta stop laughin’ so hard. My stomach is hurtin’! But you gotta agree, Lucifer is pretty old, isn’t he?”

At this point, everyone is staring over Mammon’s shoulder at Lucifer who says, “You think?”

Mammon jumps and turns around just as he gets smacked upside the head. “...D’AAAAAAAH! ...OW! Hey, what’s the big idea?! You didn’t have to hit me THAT hard!”

Asmodeus sat there shaking his head “...You know, he’s so stupid it’s almost sad.”

“Mmhm. I can’t believe he’s actually our brother. It’s almost like we're being punished or something.” Satan, once again, egging his brother on.

“Hey, I heard that!” Mammon was still holding the back of his head as he glared at his two younger brothers.

Lucifer ignored all of them bickering as he turned to me. “I heard what happened, Arabella. Apparently you outfoxed a certain dimwit of a demon, and forged a pact with him.” I could tell he was angry, but I wasn’t sure if it was aimed at Mammon, for falling for the pact, or me for not telling him when we spoke last night.

“Who’re you callin’ a dimwit?!” Mammon broke off from bickering with his brothers, only to be ignored by Lucifer.

“Your opponent may have been stupid, but even so, you’ve only just arrived. It’s a real accomplishment managing a feat like that in such a short span of time. Well done. I imagine Diavolo will be pleased as well. We continue to expect big things from you.”

Even with him being angry, that last part did sound like a genuine compliment and I couldn’t help but smile to myself.

My smile was short-lived as Mammon got tired of being ignored and grabbed my wrist to once again pull me out the door. “... Hey, human! C’mon, time to get going. Don’t just sit there with your head in the clouds. It’s time for class! So, let's go!”

I can’t help but wonder, for a brief moment, why Satan doesn’t walk me to class instead of Mammon considering he is my professor/tutor for my first class four out of the five school days. That thought is shoved out of my head just as quickly as it came in, however, as Mammon starts complaining.

“Seriously, what's with that guy? He can’t go a single minute without bringin’ up Diavolo. It’s always Diavolo this, Diavolo that. If Diavolo told you to go jump off a cliff to your death, would ya do THAT too, Lucifer?! Huh?! ...Ya know what? Knowin’ him, he probably would. Anyway, ever since you got here, human, it’s been nothin’ but one bad thing after another for me. So, let's get somethin’ straight. I didn’t make this pact ‘cause I wanted to, and I ain't happy about it! Everything I did, I did for my credit card-- for my baby Goldie! If you end up gettin’ yourself eaten by some demon here at RAD, don’t blame me, ‘cause I don’t give a damn. You got that?! Don’t go thinkin’ you’re all great and stuff just ‘cause you managed to make some stupid pact, human!”

I let him rant and rave without a word, but when he stops speaking and addresses me with that stupid, human term, I speak up.“Will you please call me by my name?”

“Shut your mouth! I’ll call you what I damn well please! You don’t deserve to have me call you by your real name, human! You're nothin’ but a lowly human. Don’t think you can go givin’ orders to ME! ‘Cause I’ll eat ya, I swear! Startin’ from that head and workin’ my way down! Is that what ya want?!” He stops and looks at me, mistaking my trembling for fear and not the anger that it is. “EH? What’s wrong? Am I that intimidating? Do I frighten you? Then listen… If you stop talkin’ back and just do what I tell ya, then things won’t be so bad for--”

“STAY!” My first command literally stops him in his tracks. Almost like he is frozen in place.  
“Wh…! Wh-What’s goin’ on? I-I can’t move…! Wh-What’d you do to me?! Is this some kind of magic?! Listen up, h...hu...huma… Arabella. What the… dammit! Don’t tell me this is all ‘cause of the pact?! Now you listen to me! You may control my body, but not my mind! I’m my own boss, and I always will be! Don’t you ever forget that! Huma… Arabella… Arabella, my boss! No, Your Majesty Arabella…!”

I smile to myself as I keep walking, before releasing him. He follows behind, grumbling all the while.

I make it to my morning classroom before Satan does and I settle myself down onto one of the beanbag chairs as I pull out my workbook and notes. I stifle a yawn as I hunch over and work on writing the Daemonic alphabet as a warm-up. 

Satan walks in a moment late, with two cups in his hand. One hot coffee, and one iced. He holds the hot one up. “I stopped by to get a coffee and they messed up my order. They remade it for me but said to keep the mess up. Want it? You look like you could use it.”

My eyes light up as I rush to grab the warm cup from his hands. Sinking back down into the beanbag, I can’t help but sigh in contentment.

“Thank you.”

Satan just nods before jumping into the lesson for today. One that is much easier to focus on with a warm cup of coffee in my hands.

We wrap up the lesson and Satan waits for me to finish packing my things up before he walks me to my Astro class and drops me off. I finished my coffee just before the bell rang and there was a bounce in my step from my renewed energy. I was… excited. I couldn’t help the smile that was on my face as I walked into my next class.

I went and took my seat, in the second row and began getting settled, when a paper heart hit me in the head. I looked around, confused as to where it even came from when I spotted Asmodeus and Solomon sitting in the back row. Asmodeus smiled and waved, gesturing for me to pick up the note.

I turned around and bent over to pick it up. When I opened it to read it, it was merely a bunch of doodles and scribbles. I turned to look at him quizzically when another one hit me. I shot him a glare before opening the second one.

You should be careful bending over in such a short skirt like that. People might go and get the wrong idea.

I turn around and shoot him a wink before sitting down right as the professor walks in. I can hear a muffled groan and have to hide my smirk.  
I am not the least bit surprised when, the second class is dismissed, I am flanked by two men. Asmodeus takes one side, throwing his arm around my shoulders, and Solomon takes the other, walking close by.

“What was that all about, Arabella? How is a guy supposed to focus on class after that?” Asmo was practically purring in my ear. 

I waited a moment and then turned to him and smiled innocently. “What do you mean? If you need to borrow my notes, just let me know.” I shrugged out from under his arm, leaving him stunned. “This is my next class, thanks for walking me guys!”

I ducked into the room before he could say anything else, laughing quietly to myself. That probably wasn’t a smart game to start playing with the Avatar of Lust… But it was too late to undo now. For future me, I’m gonna blame lack of sleep. And then the drug caffeine.

Two demons glancing at me as they talked, broke me out of my thoughts. All I could think of were the two demons in the hall yesterday. Luckily, they were just gossiping about my pact with Mammon. Man, news sure does travel fast.

I spot Lucifer and Diavolo and make my way over to them, only to find them already in a conversation with another demon.  
“Huh. Whenever you make an important announcement, the demons here couldn’t care less. But rumors… they really do spread like wildfire. Just when I thought the uproar about the new exchange student from the human world started to subside some, now they’re all freaking out about this.” Just like Lucifer and Diavolo, this other demon is dressed properly, his uniform neat. He has dark green hair with a turquoise ombre on his fringe and hazel eyes. And he, just like Lucifer and Diavolo, towers over me. Though, whereas I reach the middle of the upper arm on Diavolo and Lucifer, I reach about the shoulder height of this other guy.

I sigh as I find a desk near where they are talking and set my stuff up. I can’t help but be dwarfed by literally everyone here.

“Come now, don’t say that, Barbatos. Actually, I’d say all this gossip is a good thing. It means that everyone will be watching this human, which makes it hard for any demon to go after Arabella’s soul when no one is looking.” I glance over at Diavolo speaking, before looking away. I really shouldn’t eavesdrop. But if it’s about me, that's okay, right?

“Yes. Since Mammon’s not doing a very good job as a guardian. I told him he was to look after Arabella, but he’s off somewhere shirking his responsibilities. Though I figured this would happen.” Lucifer shakes his head, frowning.

“If you knew this would happen then why did you pick him?” I grumble under my breath. I thought it would go unnoticed, but suddenly all of them were looking at me as if just now realizing I am here.

Lord Diavolo turns to me fully with a smile on his face. “I must say, I can’t believe you managed to forge a pact with Mammon, Arabella. That’s no small feat. And what’s more, you did it in such a short time.”

“I suppose it stands as proof that you chose well bringing this human here, Lord Diavolo.” The green-haired demon speaks up.

“I’m sorry… Who’re you?”

“...Ah yes, pardon me. I suppose we haven’t met before, have we? My name is Barbatos. I apologize for not introducing myself sooner. I have the honor of serving as steward to Lord Diavolo. Pleased to make your acquaintance.” He puts a white-gloved hand on his chest and inclines his head at me by way of greeting. He’s so… formal. He might even just put Lucifer to shame in that regard.

The very same Lucifer who speaks up on his behalf. “Barbatos here is a smart and talented individual, so much so that I wish I could trade a certain idiot of a brother of mine for him instead.”

“Well, as for your brother, in the human world, it is sometimes said that a truly wise man does not flaunt his talents. He keeps them secret.” I nod my head along with Barbatos speaking, having heard the same saying before.

I tune them out as they go back and forth on the topic of Mammon when two others walk up to us. One is tall, about the same height as Barbatos, with darker skin. He has dark brown hair that flops into his blue-green eyes. He is absolutely gorgeous, and his outfit leaves little to the imagination.

I turn my eyes away as he speaks, and instead look at the other man or maybe boy, approaching.

“Ah, but I notice that you didn’t deny the part about him being cute, did you? If I might offer my own opinion, out of you seven brothers, you’re without a doubt the most troublesome, Lucifer.”

“Is that meant as a compliment, Simeon?”

The other… male… seems very child-like. He is the only one who is shorter than me, which is saying something since I am dwarfed by everyone else myself. He has blond hair peeking out from under a weird hat and blue eyes that, along with his posture, screams of petulance as he speaks.

“Pff, of course not! Duh! That was a put-down! An insult! He’s taunting you!”

“Ah, I see you’ve brought your chihuahua along with you.” I just barely manage to stifle my laugh and hide it in a cough as Lucifer taunts the boy.

Granted, it didn’t matter what I did, because he was so riled up by Lucifer. “I am NOT a chihuahua! How many times do I have to tell you that, demon?!”

“Well, what do you expect? I am a demon, after all. Now then, stop yipping at me. C’mere boy… shake! Who’s a good boy?”

“Quit it! Don’t you make fun of me! And don’t tell me to shake! I am not a dog!”

I am pulled out of the back and forth Lucifer and the boy are having as Diavolo addresses me. “Allow me to introduce you, Arabella. This is Simeon. He’s an exchange student from the Celestial Realm. Which is to say, he’s an angel.”

Simeon, the angel, turns to speak to me and there is little I can do to hide my blush. “Well, hello, Arabella. I’ve heard a lot of rumors!” I smile at him with a small, awkward wave, when Diavolo speaks again, this time introducing me to the boy.

“And this is Luke. Let’s see, you’re… a chihuahua, was it? Or are you an angel?”

“Wh…! Diavolo, now YOU’RE getting in on the act, too?! I am NOT a chihuahua! I am an angel! Listen up! As you can probably tell, I’m a low-ranking angel. BUT I’ll have you know that in the Celestial Realm I report directly to Michael the Archangel, as-” I couldn’t argue the fact that he did resemble a chihuahua. In fact, it seemed crazy to me that he was an angel when the only other thing I had to compare him to was Simeon, who looked like a god. Granted, Luke did have more of a cherubim appearance with his child-like features.

“Luke, calm down. You need to learn not to make such a huge fuss about everything.”

“But Simeon…!”

Lucifer sighs before turning to Luke. “He’s right. That’s exactly why people call you a chihuahua, you know?”

“Usually, the only one who calls me a chihuahua is YOU, Lucifer!”

And once again, their back and forth is interrupted. This time, however, it is by Barbatos. “It’s nearly time for the first bell to sound.”

Simeon looks down at his phone and then back up to me. “Yes, you’re right. I apologize for any trouble we’ve caused, Arabella.” He then turns around and heads to a desk at the front of the class, settling in.

“In any event, I’m relieved to see that things seem to be going well for you here.” Diavolo nods to me before walking to the door and waiting there for Lucifer and Barbatos. The former, who has turned to look at me expectantly.

“Arabella, look after Mammon for me, would you?”

Barbatos beats me to the punch at pointing out the obvious, but my eyebrows still raise in question. “As I remember it, Mammon was supposed to be the one looking after Arabella, correct?”

Without waiting for my response, they both turn and head to the door where Diavolo is waiting. I can hear Lucifer say to Barbatos: “Yes, that’s how I remember it as well. Your point?”

The only one left standing before me is Luke, who is frowning at the retreating backs of the three demons. He turns back to me before mumbling under his breath.

“Never trust...mmrmhrm…”

I lean closer, trying to hear what he is saying. “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch what you said.”

“Hey! Don’t lean down toward me like an adult listening to a child! You don’t need to come down to my level! I’m not a kid!” I raise my hands before straightening up and backing up a step. “...Never trust a demon. Especially when that demon is Lucifer. Listen to me. He’s a monster and a brute. He’s uncivilized, immoral, and… and also…”

“And also a sadist?” I laughed. I think it is sweet, that he is warning me, but also kind of pointless. I am in Hell. And Lucifer and his brothers are the only line of defense I have from the rest of the demons here.

Luke looks relieved. “Yes, exactly! He’s the most sadistic of sadists! ...I was against this from the beginning. What are they thinking, bringing humans to the Devildom as exchange students… So, you’ve been warned. You get what I’m saying, right? Okay.”

I nod to him and he rushes over to join Simeon back at the front of the classroom, no doubt filling him in on our little chat. I roll my neck and stretch my arms out before I settle into my seat with a stifled yawn. I settle my head into my arms on my desk and hope that everyone takes this as a sign that I do not want to be disturbed until class starts. The interactions with demons and angels and such are becoming more exhausting than the actual classes themselves.

Of course, the idea of peace is short-lived as the two chairs on either side of me are pulled out.

“Coffee wearing off already?” The amusement in Satan’s voice is clear. My only response is a muffled groan.

From the opposite side of me, an elbow taps me in the ribs. “Hey, human, quit being all mopey.”

“Owww! Hey!” I shoot a glare at Mammon before sitting up as the professor walks in.

I spend the next hour just trying to ignore Mammon next to me and focus on the lecture. It is definitely easier said than done and I find myself kicking him under the table more than once trying to get him to shut up.

Demonology as a whole seems like an interesting class. However, it seems this class is going to give the most trouble solely because of my classmates.

Satan gets up the second class is dismissed and disappears, leaving me to have lunch with Mammon yet again. This time, he actually let me enjoy a full meal before escorting me to the lounge and dropping me off.

With a little less than an hour to kill before I have my potions class, I decide to work on my self-portrait some. I take my jacket off and lay it across the back of one of the chairs and roll up my sleeves so I don’t get anything on them before I kneel down in front of a small coffee table and set out all of my supplies and set to work.

I’ve never had so much trouble with an art project before. Or at least not one that didn’t involve sculpting. By the time my hour is up, I am surrounded by crumpled up pieces of paper and eraser marks. At one point, I got so frustrated that I threw a couple of my wadded up balls clear across the room.

Surprised that no one is here yet to take me to my next class, and also a little grateful they haven’t seen this mess, I get up from the floor and hurry across the room to grab the wads I lobbed. Except, there are no wads on the floor. And lying on a couch, facing away from where I sat, reading a book, is Lucifer.

“Oh. Uh… Hi. How long have you been there…?”

“You really need to pay more attention to your surroundings. I’ve been here the entire time.” I flush at the thought of him being here through my mini rampage as he holds out his hand with three, wrinkly but flattened out, drawings. “Here. I do believe you dropped them earlier.” He gives me a pointed stare.

I snatch them out of his hand. “Those are private.” Looking down at the drawings I see my last couple of attempts at a decent self-portrait. But they are all smudged and dark and vulnerable. They are the perfect depiction of how I feel. I can’t help but grimace, knowing that he saw these.

“Isn’t your task to create a self-portrait? These look nothing like you.”

“There is more than just one kind of self-portrait. In any case, I have a bit of an artist's block. I was merely sketching.” Half-truth and half-lie. This is another kind of self-portrait, and I was just sketching, but these were my actual attempts.

“Those are some pretty dark sketches.” I can’t make out anything behind his masked expression. I can never seem to tell just what he’s thinking. And I hate it.

I sigh, turning around to walk back to my table with him following behind. “Hence why they ended up on the other side of the room.”

“So you’re saying none of those other sketches scattered around your table look like this?” Lucifer looks around before bending down and reaching to pick one of them up. “Hmm, let’s see--”

In a blind panic, I reach out and grab his wrist to stop him from grabbing one from the floor. “Please don’t!”

Lucifer freezes, before looking down at my hand, encircling his wrist, and giving me an icy glare. I immediately drop it and back up a small step.

“Sorry! I’m sorry… Look, I didn’t know you were in here earlier and I shouldn’t have lost my cool like that. But these are all very personal and I would much prefer it if you didn’t. So, please. Please just... don’t.”

Lucifer looks me over for a second before adjusting his sleeves and turning around to walk out. “Fine. It’s time to head to our class anyway. Hurry up and clean up your mess. I’ll be in the hallway.”

Lucifer is quiet when I walk out of the lounge and I am grateful for the silent walk to potions. I am getting ready to thank him for walking me to class when I notice him walking in and having a seat himself. He is in this class with me…

Trying to ignore that fact, I look around the classroom. It’s laid out like a typical chemistry room with a lecture area and a separate lab area. I sigh as I take the only open seat in the room, the one right next to Lucifer, and begin to set myself up for class.

We went through two full hours of lecture today. I’m not sure if that is a good or bad thing considering I was struggling to concentrate with Lucifer right next to me. I could tell he was keenly aware of what I was doing which made me anxious and it was a whole cycle.

I kept up with notes decently enough but I couldn’t stop myself from doodling in the margins either. Anything to try to keep myself distracted.

When we were released from class, I bolted out of the room, not looking back. And oddly enough, Lucifer let me go.


End file.
